Malevolent Craft
by Adeleste
Summary: RELATIVE THREAT SEQUEL Suze & Jesse spend summer's end together, but ghastly things start. In school, things get worse. Certain people return and want Suze dead. A new kid, a jealous Jesse. Everything's uncontrollable, and Suze can't seem to stop it.
1. Ch 1 Back

Sequel to New Cousin: After a rough passage through Shadowland, Suze and Jesse are back together, soaking up the last rays of sun before their senior year started. Problem is, things go terrible. Suze starts to wonder, now that Jesse's alive, will he still love her, or will Kelly take him away from her? Crissi's back, and is Paul really as bad as we think? Jesse becomes jealous of the new kid Matt, which Suze feels butterflies for. Jesse might call off the engagement. Could everything that happened last summer be a lie? Things go even worse as Crissi continues threatening and stalking Suze, but she can't seem to stop anything as her relationship with Jesse spins out of control. Will they be able to live through it all together as Crissi's threats grow more and more menacing? Suze knows one thing, and that is Crissi wants Suze…but what would she want?? She must solve all this before it's too late, or is it already?

**Ch 1 Back**

_I was outside staring at the sky when I felt a tap on my shoulder and a masculine, seductive voice whispered, "Hello querida, did you miss me? I told you that I'd be back."_

_I whirled around and was face to face with an alive… _

_Jesse.  _

"Jesse?" I asked weakly, hardly believing anything.  

It was impossible! He _died_! "Is it really you?" 

I gazed with earnest anticipation.  I saw the same, dark, soulful, expressive eyes gazing at me with tender love. My eyes wandered. It was as though I was trying to capture this memory and bottle it up.  Same comforting chest, that all-too familiar masculine scent, his trademark sinewy, yet gentle, arms, and the face I knew so well. The same beautiful smile, perfect teeth, firm jaw line, that unique scar slicing through his right eyebrow…the same lips that uttered such bedazzling Spanish and I soon found out, the same toe curling kisses.  Jesse lowered his mouth toward mine and I felt his lips press slowly against my own.  I closed my eyes.  Breathing ceased to be a necessity. I felt my heart thump against my chest. The world just melted away as his hands caressed my face.   It was Jesse.  My Jesse.

He was alive.  But how?  We paused and I could feel his rapid heartbeat. I mean, it's not like I go feeling everyone's heartbeat.  Red Beaumont kind of killed it, being the whole I-am-a-vampire thing, but here I was, in Jesse's arms.  He kept muttering Spanish into my hair and I smiled.

             "I thought you were-"

            Jesse pulled back and held two fingers to my lips and pressed softly. "Shhhh, don't say it..." 

            I looked him up and down again.  I still couldn't believe it. Was I dreaming? Would reality wrench him away from me again? "I thought I'd lost you! I've been so miserable! Oh, Jesse..."

            Jesse hugged me even tighter than before. "I'm sorry, querida. I'm sorry for your suffering…te quiero más que a ninguna…" (I love you more than any other.)

            Another kiss confirmed it.  His being here, I mean.  As my knees started to shake, I though, "Forever like this wouldn't be too bad..."

            "I agree, querida. Eternity would be good," Jesse whispered and we both smiled.  I had forgotten that we could read each other's minds-literally, "now, where is your ring? You didn't dispose of it, did you?"

            We stayed like that for a while longer. I looked at the new house he was living in, beyond the tree Spike so often climbed. It probably smelled like fresh wood. Which room was his?

            Jesse felt my mood change. "Is something wrong, Susannah?" I felt his lips move against my hair, "we're still engaged, after all." I felt him lick his lips and I wondered briefly whether I might have dandruff. Woe to me if I did.  I mean, I didn't exactly dress up to the occasion. Being in mourning ever since.

            "You're my neighbor."

            "Yes. Is something wrong?" his voice came out muffled and happy-ish. Did he notice my mood swing or my not-so-sure-existent-dandruff?

            I looked at him. Or, tried to, really. It was hard, since Jesse's face was buried in my two-month-long-since-I-washed-it hair that was all frizzy and probably smelled bad, too, but I managed to look at him. I guess he didn't mind the greasy hair; just maybe, I was over thinking things. I did recall the occasional shower.

            "You used to be my roommate."

            Jesse pulled away slightly, yes, slightly, and looked me in the eye. "You didn't answer my question; so I had been your roommate but my question was 'is something wrong'. Do you miss me being in your room?" Jesse smiled but I heard the tone of his voice; it was hurt. I looked up at his face, and saw a wounded puppy-dog look.

Oh damn.  That look.  How could I explain? I was exhilarated,-no, _thrilled_ that Jesse was back. I could get married...start a family...but-

            I studied Jesse's clothes. 'Different', but not in a bad way.  Jesse was alive two months ago…but back then, he was a gorgeous, homeless guy with no family and basically no past life. He had been there and done that. And now…now, he was a part of this generation.  It was so odd, seeing him dressed like, well, like how a guy would dress.

I couldn't shake the feeling.  I didn't even know what it was.  It seemed different. Everything, I mean.  He had a family now. He wasn't my invisible-to-the-world, knife-wielding, strangled to death Hector "Jesse" "vaquero" de Silva, unknown to modern technology.

            So then what? When school started, all the girls would ask me questions while gawking at him.  He was guaranteed to be the latest catch at Junipero Serra Catholic Academy.  He could have any girl, now that he existed.  He would forget about me and call off this "after-college" engagement. Did I want that? Did I want all the Kelly Prescotts' and Debbie Mancusco's in the world to drool over Jesse? Kelly said Bryce Martinson was the hottest in the Valley, then Tad Beaumont. I figured she was going to be re-prioritizing her list soon. Plus, I mean, there was Paul now. And Tad and Bryce kinda moved. 

He wouldn't be my own to see.  My little secret.

            My mind reeled.  Huh.

            Even in my head, it sounded so...

_            …possessive and selfish._

            "Querida? Are you all right?" Jesse blinked his long (longer than my own) lashes. I noticed the lashes failed to hide his concern.  I marveled at their length...at how they curved ever so slightly...

            I shook my head, clearing all the thoughts. I love him. That's what mattered. Since he proposed, I had nothing to fear. "Nothing's wrong, Jesse."

            He grinned, stroking my cheek, thinking all tension was forgotten, and then told me, "Now that I'm back, I advise that you look like yourself again. You are looking, how would you say it? Oh yes. A little _under the weather, _no"

            I looked down. I was wearing black, fraying penny loafers, dark pants from weeks ago, and a stained black t-shirt. I didn't even bother wearing makeup. Dopey was kind enough to point it out the day before saying, "Hey, what the fuck have you done to my sister?" I took the liberty to punch him.

            Maybe that's why my mom worried.  Then again, he's suffered before.

            "I look beautiful, don't I," I said dryly.  Jesse grasped that hand and tilted my face up with his other. His eyes teased me, yet were serious.

            Whoa, how can a person do that? He said in a somber voice, "No. I'm sorry, querida, but I have to admit; you don't look beautiful,"- I opened my mouth, utterly miffed. He was supposed to be all 'No, you're lovely, stay that way' even though we all knew for a fact that I wasn't going to remain in black and greasy haired like that one guy, what's his face, in Harry Potter. Oh yes, Snape. He fooled around with a greasy chestnut tendril and wrapped it around his finger and flicked it across his cheek.  Jesse continued-"you look exquisite; more stunning than any angel or maiden in the macrocosm."

**…         **

That'll do.

            "Now, Susannah," he grinned roguishly, "what would you say I kissed you?" Maybe I could get used to this.

He continued playing with that greasy chunk of hair.  Flicking it back and force across his face. I gulped. Gosh, he was so amazing. "I'd say go ahead because I love you."

You can imagine what happened next. I He breathed my name and I never realized just how much I missed his voice when he said "Susannah", breathy and transfixed, as if he were totally infatuated with me.

Which, I knew he was.

We didn't realize it but we were being watched.

            "Te quiero, querida…" Jesse wrapped his arms around me and he resumed the position of burying his face in my hair. I was going to faint. He was so...freaking…close… I could just die like this and not mind.

            I laughed and tried to look up but I couldn't. "I think that means 'I love you'." I gave my best impression and Jesse grinned, looking mildly surprised. I hugged him tighter and felt his arms around my waist tighten.

            Jesse laughed too and he teased, "Wow. I thought I'd never see the day where you knew Spanish. So that means all along you knew what 'querida' meant." He used the word "wow".  He never ceased to amaze me.

            He wasn't an orphan living in my house anymore. He had a live family, thank you very much, and no crazy psychopathic fiancées siccing their dead lovers after him.

            Those were pluses I suppose.

I considered myself lucky. After all, I had thought that I would become a nun when I lost Jesse. Much like Father Dominic's love story, which I only got partial pieces of since he didn't seem to warm up to the subject. The Woeful Tale of a PriestOnce upon a time, a young, handsome blue-eyed man fell in love with a young, beautiful girl. Sadly, she died. No wait-, she was dead. She was a ghost and he was a mediator. He knew it would never work out but, alas, he couldn't help it. Then one day, after she found out what kept her on Earth, she left, leaving Father D, I mean, the guy, to rot, alone in his misery. Knowing it was best and he was being selfish, he let her go. Afterwards, since breaking his heart, he became a priest, doomed to never love and remain a lonely, old, sixty-some year old man. No wife, no children. Just him and his faith. What a life. Maybe that's why Father Dom didn't encourage my relation with Jesse and when Jesse was taken away from me I didn't tell him…

But ah…Jesse was alive. That was what mattered.

Too bad my Wheel of Fortune was turning...

            "Let's go somewhere and celebrate." 

I blinked. "Okay…"

"Let's go to the beach. I'm positive that you wouldn't mind." Jesse looked at me. I looked down.  Ehh, maybe some ocean water would do me good.

            "Sure, let me go get a swimsuit and I'll be right with you." I suppose ocean water cleanses the hair, too. I ran inside the house through the back, knowing the rest of the family was making an acquaintance with the de Silva's.

            Five minutes later, we were on the road, Jesse driving. The leather interior felt good against my bare back and I snuggled against the chair, turning up the radio so the song blasted through the car. I didn't care about anything except for the fact that Jesse was alive. And could drive. I adjusted my seatbelt. Always have to be safe; I learned the hard way ever since we were in that accident caused by Michael Meducci. You know, when we crashed into the Carmel-By-The-Sea Tourist stop. Lovely previous summer memories.

With the windows open, I felt like a star with this incredibly sexy guy who had his towel slung over a shoulder, hair natural and blowing all over like mine sitting next to me, driving a top-of-the-line car.  One that Jake would stop his car for in order to get out and study. I relaxed. Jesse seemed like a safe driver.  Actually a very good driver, much like Tad Beaumont and his Porsche. Except Jesse was the better driver. And a better kisser. And hotter…oh, so much hotter. I recalled my first kiss, which was interrupted by a person in the tiny Porsche's backseat who Tad didn't notice. Spiders. Ha, my ass. 

I shut my eyes, feeling the late afternoon eighty-nine degree heat on my body. I don't know how he did it, but he fit a surfboard in the corvette. He surfs, too? "Hey, Jesse?"

"Mmm?" I opened my eyes and saw Jesse's head turn towards me. I was pretty sure he was looking at me…I mean, he was wearing sunglasses.

"Where did you learn how to drive and surf? _I_ can't bloody surf, let alone drive."

Jesse smiled secretly. "You will never know." With that, he deliberately pushed the bridge of his sunglasses higher and jerked his head away.

Thanks.

I was sitting on a towel on the beach, listening to music, while trying to get a tan. Jesse went to get some drinks and I looked around. Kids, teens, grandparents, cute guys my age, fat hairy old men in Speedos, …everyone was here on this glorious day. It was so crowded and full of people that it was hard to find a spot with a decent view. Jesse and I finally chose a spot by the lifeguard Rick that performed CPR on me when Gina was here. The hot lifeguard who looked like Brad Pitt. (With the long blonde hair and the blue eyes, and his tan skin that needed Coppertone) Yeah. That one. The afternoon heat started to get to me and my eyes drifted shut as I lay down, shielding my eyes with my arm. I needed a tan. A normal, genuine Californian tan.

Five, ten minutes passed, and I felt a shadow and a tap on my shoulder. I uncovered my eyes, looked towards the west to see stunning turquoise eyes, brown flyaway hair and fine washboard abs. The guy was crouched down on his feet, his arms balanced on his knees so he was at my eye level. I gulped, trying not to break eye contact.

Where was Jesse?!

            "And you are…?"

            I gulped again, hoping he didn't notice my discomfort. "Suze… and you?"

            He grinned and I felt like pulling out my sunglasses. He looked like one of those guys advertising tooth paste. "Matt, nice to meet you, Suze." I felt a shudder run down my spine. The way he said it was so…

            Transfixing.

            I looked at the concession stand and saw Jesse paying for ice cream.          

            "…I just moved here and I'm going to that June-whatever school." Obviously, not the brightest bulb in the bunch…

            All of a sudden a sallow skinned person waved at Matt. I resisted the urge to hum 'the Addams Family' and I watched with wonder as the guy yelled, "HURRY UP MATT! WE'RE GOING SURFING!" Whoa…Addams Family boy surfs?

            Matt looked at me and smiled. "That's Billy. Quite a character, actually. I have to go; but I will be seeing you again. As someone famous said, 'tomorrow is another day'.  I think that was like, Mother Teresa or something." 

            Wow.  I resisted the urge to roll my eyes.   "Yeah…bye…" I feebly waved 'goodbye' as he left. Was he going to the Academy too? Was that what the whole "June-whatever school" thinf was about? I never mentioned going to the Junipero Serra Catholic Academy. I was utterly confused but still, he was hot and…well…

            I mentally slapped myself.  WHAT WAS _WRONG_ WITH ME?? I HAD ONLY MET THE GUY SIX MINUTES AGO. What was I _thinking_? I shook my head. Forget him. He's a freak. Just because Jesse wasn't there didn't give me **any** right to go gallivanting after any guy I met.

            I looked back at him and he looked at me hungrily…

            Like Paul

            I was instantly reminded of Paul.

I stood up and decided to help Jesse out. There was all these people in my direct path, so I had to walk along the water.  I walked a couple paces and before I knew it, I tripped and landed into the water.  I know. Pathetic, really.  Spluttering, I stood knee deep in the water and opened my eyes. I saw green eyes staring back at me…

Crissi. I heard laughter.

I extended my hand and felt the water. No hand. Just a reflection. I breathed a sigh of relief.  Gosh, I was so paranoid.  It was just my reflection.  Like those mirrors in the House of Mirrors.  S_pooky _places, I know, but still

However, my reflection suddenly reached out and grabbed my ankle.  Totally caught off guard, I lost my footing and was instantly pulled down.  Since when was the water so deep?  I moved my arms, trying to stay afloat, all the while being pulled further away from the coast.

I felt my head go under and all I saw was inky blackness.

I don't rightly recall what happened, only that after what could have been eons, I was pulled back to the surface. It was like dejâ vu all over again, except no Brad to say I spewed like Mount St. Helens. I must have lost consciousness while underwater.

"CPR! CPR! Someone do CPR!" I heard people shout.

I sat up, coughing. "No, I'm fine!" I was relieved that I didn't puke. I felt arms around me and I looked up to see Jesse. He had wrapped his arms around me.

"Are you alright, querida? I thought you drowned." The ice cream was abandoned by our lounge chairs, dripping slightly.

I looked into the water and saw nothing.

"Yes…I'm fine."

It was probably just my reflection. After all, I looked like Crissi. We had the same hair color, same eyes… Plus when I extended my hand, she extended her hand. But that didn't explain the laughter.  I was going crazy. 

            "Susannah, let's go home..." Jesse gave me his hand and I grabbed it. He pulled me up and handed me a towel. I dabbed my eyes and rubbed off the sand and gunk on me. Who knew the ocean was so filthy.     

            "No, miss, you can't. You have to go to the hospital. It's procedure. The ambulance is on its way."

            "Screw the ambulance. I almost drowned last summer, and lived. I can do it again, if you can't remember. Remember, **_Rick_**? Don't you have a college to go to?"-Jesse looked at me oddly.

            "Susannah…" Jesse said in a warning tone. I ignored him.

But Rick (aka reincarnation of Brad Pitt) scowled and left.  Damn.

            "Buenas noches, querida. I'll see you soon. My room is in the front, facing yours." Even in the twilight, I could see a glint in Jesse's eyes. Jesse kissed my hand and I smiled sadly as he walked towards his house. What a day. I stared at the horizon that our house allowed us to see.  Beyond it was the darkening bay, beach, the Valley, and all of Carmel. The sky was clad in pastel colors; pink, lavender, blue, yellow and orange. I shook my head and went inside. The water must have really screwed up my brain. Max greeted me by burying his snout in my hand, a daily routine, checking if I had any food on me.

            "I'm home." I called, just in case if anyone cared. Another routine, one I started when Jesse was around. I dropped my bag by the door, kicked off my flip flops and proceeded into the dining room where my mom usually set up her laptop.

            "Suzie? Where were you? We all talked to the new family. You missed so much!" My mom looked up from her laptop.  I suppose I looked more haggard than I felt, because she instantly stood up.  "Are you all right?"

Umm, let's see…I nearly drowned, I'm hearing things, and my boyfriend's back…anything else?

            Oh yeah. I might have a psychotic dead bitch after my ass.  But that's just the paranoia talking.

I looked into her blue eyes and replied, "I'm fine.  And I was nowhere. Places to go, people to see."

            "Yeah," Brad came into view, drinking a protein shake. A p_rotein shake_? "The oldest sis is hot. They said that they had an older brother. I didn't see him, though. Hope he surfs…" Then he continued by, chugging down the rest of the protein shake, wondering what he put in it to give it that taupe color.

            I brushed back my semi-wet hair as Mom eyed me.

Shoot. Did I look… _disheveled??_ I made sure that my one-piece bathing suit was securely hidden.  Yeah…still hidden.

I noticed that Dopey didn't leave the room.  Rather, he was looking at me oddly.  I started babbling. _ "Really._ Um. Okay, that's just super. Hot girls are good for you.  I mean, I have nothing against gay people, but I guess we now know that you don't plan on moving to…what states allow gay marriages?  That's irrelevant.  I mean, I respect that and all, but this just lessens the awkwardness that comes with coming out of the closet…um, so if you'll excuse me…" I started to turn around but the expression on my mom's face stopped me.

            My mom's eyebrows had gone way up. I realized that I said the wrong thing (about the whole gay thing) and I felt like kicking myself. Why don't I ever think properly when I must??

            "Suze? What aren't you telling me? We met five beautiful young ladies and you weren't there. We invited them to dinner tomorrow so maybe you'll finally meet them." Mom paused and studied me with a squinty look. Was my shirt wet? Was I sopping? I tried to make sure that the dryers at the beach dried most of it. The breeze dried the rest.

Act normal; don't act if you're the happiest woman alive. Don't act as if I was smooching the hottest guy on earth and going with him to the beach. Please don't ask if I met Jesse; please don't ask if I met the brother- "did you meet Jesse, their brother?"

            Damn. Freaking mother instincts!  I flushed slightly and looked around. Plants, a surf board, mom's laptop, a table, just don't make eye contact…

            "Suzie? Did you?"

            "Er…"  Why wasn't my brain cooperating?  Couldn't I have just lied?  She'd be none the wiser.

            "Susannah Simon! Were you fraternizing with their brother? Not that I mind, since it's good to know you're not a total social outcast but I'd like to know. I thought that Paul boy was nice…but that other guy, what was his name? Well, anyway, he was also very nice. We're having dinner tomorrow with the de Silva's so…"

            After a long pause, she spoke up. "Suze, you smell like sea water."  She looked me in the eye.  I blinked.

            …

            "I have to use the bathroom."

            I left Mom to her suspicions and made my escape upstairs. Max went upstairs with me. Now that Jesse was alive, Max had been coming inside of my room. Even if Spike was in there.

            I locked my door and looked around. Well… at least I could change in peace now. I watched as Spike crawled into my room through the open window. Sensing that Jesse was on the other side of the street, and that Max was in the room, Spike left. I shut the window behind him and saw Jesse unpacking on the other side. He looked up and waved, smiling. I waved back. Then he continued unpacking, stopping only once to let in a fluffy mass of fur through his window, stroking it tenderly. Grrr. Stupid fluff of feline. I envied Spike.

            I missed Jesse. I mean, I missed the _ghost_ Jesse who wore that billowy shirt that was cut low to show perfectly sculpted abs. The Jesse who came instantaneously when I was in deep sludge. The Jesse I knew who had lived in, died in, and haunted my room. Don't get me wrong; I love Jesse. Even I didn't know why I was feeling nostalgic.

            I washed my face, performed my nightly rituals and I burrowed under the covers. My eyes closed and didn't open again that night.

            _I was clutching Critical Theory since Plato in freezing weather, in a miniskirt and fishnets, heading towards a graveyard. Not just any graveyard, but the Mission cemetery for one special tombstone that I wanted to see. I went down a path I knew so well from earlier walks and weaving my way through tombstones, some dating back to the eighteen hundreds, nearing the end of my walk, I stopped:_

_"Here lies Hector "Jesse" de Silva, 1830-1850"_

_The strange thing was that the tombstone I knew so well (I, in fact, had supervised its carving so I knew what it said) didn't have anything etched on it._

_            It was blank._

_            I started to dig, knowing I would have to dig over six feet. I got dirt and grime all over my fishnets and miniskirt. After what seemed like forever, I found nothing. No body, no casket, no nothing, just a hole. I stood up and then I felt warm arms around my freezing midriff._

_            "Trouble in paradise, Hon?"_

_I turned my head, trying to see who it was but I find his lips first. A cold, bitter kiss filled with lust._

_But I knew that it was Paul._

_            Ask for a Jesse, get a Paul._

_            I pushed him away, because I was too cold to inflict any major damage upon him. I had to avoid Paul. If he touched me, we could shift anywhere._

_"Leave me alone, Paul." I broke into a run but Paul caught up easily._

_            "Ah…I thought so…how's de Silva?"_

_            I stopped in my tracks and face Paul's leering face. I clench my jaw. "What do you not get about me loving Jesse, Paul? Get away from Jesse and me! You promised before the end of school to never lay a finger on us!"_

_            Paul opened his mouth to reply but I threw a punch at Paul but he caught my wrist, brought it to his mouth, and I stared in horror as he licked my hand._

_            "YOU FUCKING SICKO!!"_

_            He ignored me and continued upwards…leaving a nasty trail of saliva. Paul's saliva._

_            Suddenly we were in his room, the same metallic, sterile one._

_            "Spend the night with me, Suzie…" he hissed and I was reminded of that day…pain…anger…humiliation…_

_            "No. Paul, stop it! STOP!"  I looked around and panicked. This was the person who _did_ the raping! I tried to get away but he held onto my legs. If I shifted, he'd go with me. What are my possible plans?_

_            "I promise I won't hurt you.  You know you want this. Jesse won't mind. Jesse's dead. He can't-"_

_            "SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP!!"  I had to escape Paul. Jesse! Save me!_

_            "Suze…Suzie Suzie Suzie…you are _**so**_ funny. He's not ever going to come but I swear this won't hurt. Not one bit…"_

_            "NOO PAUL. STOP. Paul, NO!! JESSE!!" I screamed as Paul continued, ignoring my desperate pleas._

_Jesse never came._

"NO!" I sit up in bed. The first thing I noticed was a headache. A major shifter migraine. The second thing was that I was sweating and I gasped for breath. It seemed so real…like that last time. (Was that a dream?)

I never took the whole rape thing seriously. I thought it was all fake…that I'd wake up and it'd be over. I was so convinced, so convinced that I forgot all about it. But the hurt still remained. I felt a sudden pain between my legs and I threw off the covers. I muffled a scream with a pillow.

No. NO. It couldn't be. It was a dream.

Fishnets and a mini replaced my pajama bottoms that I distinctly recall wearing. Blood. Blood was all over my lower half.

I wasn't on my period, either. It ended.

I gave a strangled cry, similar to the one when Jesse left to the rectory, and I started to sob into my hands.  My shoulders shook with each sob.

What did this mean? What did this _mean?_ How did this happen?

I sniffed and roughly dried my tears. I felt hysterical, like Heather from "The Blair Witch" when she admitted to herself that they had crossed the same log.

I gasped between every word I said. "I'm not a virgin. He's haunting me. I'm not a virgin. Paul's haunting me. Even in my sleep. I'm not a virgin. Jesse's not going to be my first. Jesse's not…" My voiced faded and I took a deep breath. "Just got to sleep, Suze. Go to sleep. I never had the chance to cry. The shrink back in New York said it was good to vent." I breathed again and broke into a new wave of sobs. I wondered if anyone up woke. I wondered what I was going to do. I wondered if Paul was nearby. I should have been happy. Jesse was alive.

But I wasn't.

**AN HOUR LATER**

            "Go to sleep, Suze. Just go to sleep. Don't be scared. Paul's not coming back; he's missing. Don't think that he could be hiding on our roof."

            It didn't help. I realized that Paul could go anywhere if he's been there. He could just imagine he were here and BOOM. Plus school was starting in some weeks and he was probably going to be in my classes.

            Now that did _not_ help me sleep.

**FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER**

            "_Go to sleep…go to sleep…go to sleep lit-tle Suze…go to sleep. Go to sleep. Go to sleep right now…Lullaby…and goodnight…_not working…_one sheep…two sheep…"_

**AN HOUR LATER**

            "One hundred thirty-seven sheep…one hundred thirty-eight sheep…"

**AN HOUR LATER**

            "Schools going to start…I'll have math to distract myself…hell, it'll distract everyone, right? …the _wheels on the bus go round and round. Round and round. Round and Round the wheels on the bus go round and round. All day long …"_

            Finally, fatigue caught up and I fell asleep.

_"Love you, Suze…" Jesse wrapped his arm around my neck and I closed my eyes, leaning against his chest. Ah…this is wonderful…Jesse was here…he said-_

_            Wait- 'Love you, _**Suze'?? **_Something wasn't right. I felt Jesse's arms tighten and I snapped open my eyes to meet laughing green ones…_

_"You're as good as dead, Suze," Crissi shrieked and then she cackled menacingly. Great. First Paul, now Crissi, "you left me to rot in hell but I'm coming for you, cousin. I'm going to rip out your guts and sprawl it from here to New York. Then I'm going to claim Jesse and I'll cut you up into tiny bits, so tiny, that I'll feed them to Max for breakfast." She laughed and soon her face vanished, soon to be replaced with Paul's._

_            "Miss me, Suze? I'm going to get you…"_

_            Paul reached for me and I screamed. "Stop it! Leave me alone!"_

_            "Ah…but Suze…I can't."_

Waking up, I realized what was wrong.

            These dreams weren't going to stop since, well…

            They were back.

**A/N: There you have it, the first chapter… **

**  
Like I said: Any comments to help improve this story: I'm all ears. :) REVIEWS! I LOVE REVIEWS! DRINKS ALL AROUND! **


	2. Ch 2 Dinnertime Drama

Ch 2 Dinnertime

_Paul shoved a pill in my mouth. "Here! Eat this!"_

I screamed and sat up, tipping half my eggs onto my cloth napkin and I was suddenly aware of five pairs of eyes staring at me from around the table.

"Suzie, honey, are you all right?"

I brushed my hair out of my eyes and nodded. One restless night of little sleep, bags that the miracle worker cover up couldn't hide, and troubled nightmares. They're starting again. Like at the beginning of my junior year, I kept dreaming of that foggy hallway. The last time a dream came true was where Jesse became alive. But that was something good. These dreams were, well, bad. They were getting worse…more _real. _Like some twisted Freddy Krueger movie, without the 80s clothes or Johnny Depp.

"It's apparent to me that Suze is suffering from insomnia, an occurrence due to lack of sleep. Since it's apparent that you dislike coffee, I'm assuming the chocolate you eat might be the cause of this. I found some Godiva chocolate by your nightstand; perhaps you shouldn't eat chocolate within three hours of sleep. Try drinking milk before you sleep. In this article I read, Feng Shui may help. Get rid of the TV in your room and make it into a comfortable sleeping area, shut the blinds, make sure your bed's comfortable as well. It is even said that sex helps you sleep, though I wouldn't advise it since you'll be at risk for sexually transmitted diseases, or, now known as infections." I looked at Doc with an exasperated sigh.

Over the summer, David's voice had deepened slightly but his voice tended to crack at odd times. He was fifteen, going into ninth. His braces were to be removed sometime this year and he grew out his hair (Sort of shaggy, but still very cute. I complimented the change and he blushed when I asked if it was for impressing a girl) a little so his once greatly exaggerated ears looked smaller. Lot of changes, except that he still had that Albert Einstein brain. To me, he looked like a real cutie in glasses. Not sure how the other ladies think about him. I advised him going to the beaches and getting a tan and six-pack while he was at it.

"Many woman your age also suffer from nightmares and-"

"David, I think that is enough, I don't want Suzie to get any wild ideas."

"No, continue. I want to know if Suze can die from this 'cause if she does, can I get her room?"

I heard Andy give Brad a satisfying whack on the head.

I started my breakfast (consisting of fluffy scrambled eggs, non-greasy bacon, soft, warm muffins, and toast) and as I reached for my orange juice, I noticed this thing in my mouth. I spat it out and studied it. It was white and looked like…a pill. I stared at it in horror. What the hell?? I was completely weirded out. First the fishnets and the blood and now a pill. What did this all mean?

"Umm, Suze? Are you eating that?" David pointed his fork at my eggs and his eyes narrowed when he noticed what I was looking at. "Suze? What is that?"

Everyone looked at what I was looking at. Thanks, Doc, thanks.

Everything would have been okay if Brad didn't add his little note.

Brad strutted over and towered over me. "HEY! It looks like those…" his voice wavered as my mother looked at him. "Yes, Brad? It's obvious you know what it is."

"It's a mint!" I hurriedly said, but Brad blurted, "It looks like those sex pills at Kelly's party!"

I looked at everyone. (Jake was at his dorm, preparing for another year at college) They all were staring intently at my face, stabbing at their eggs and chewing. My mom, especially. I was treading on some pretty explosive territory.

"What do you take me for? A _whore_? NO! This isn't some 'sex pill'! This is, err, Claritin! Yeah, Claritin for my allergies." I sniffed to prove my point.

"You just said it was a mint, genius."

There was three minutes of silence. Then, Doc looked at me. "Claritin has the word 'Claritin' on the pill, as well as the number of hours the dose relieves. At least, the non-drowsy kind does. This, however, does not. Besides, you don't have allergies; Mom would have told me."

Damn.

"What's the big deal? Heck, this could be aspirin! You knew I wasn't feeling well when they moved in. Why are you all making such a crisis out of this?" I flung down my napkin and strode out of the room.

"Because I saw you leave and go into a red car. SUZE, GET BACK HERE!" When it was obvious I wasn't, my mom said in her sternest voice, "be ready for dinner, young lady. If you're this rude when our guest come then you may as well not come at all."

That was the least of my problems. The biggest question was how did a stimulant pill get in my mouth?

* * *

I plopped down onto the sofa and turned on the TV.

_I will not fall asleep, no matter how drowsy I feel. _I flipped through channels and stopped on the news, watching the weather. Figuring out that this was boring and going to make me fall asleep, I went to the DVD cabinet and pulled out Doc's Lord of the Rings collection. The battles should keep me awake. I guess they were even more boring then I anticipated.

"_Suze!" I opened my eyes and saw Paul in front of me, blocking the TV._

"_How'd you get in my house?" I demanded. Paul smiled. "I can shift, remember?"_

_Oh._

"_Well? Hurry up and tell me what you want. You've been haunting me and I've given more than plenty enough chances stay away."_

_Paul grinned sheepishly. "I just wanted to tell you that you're a virgin."_

"_What?"_

"_You are a virgin."_

"_Huh?"_

_Paul gave his famous eye roll and turned towards the TV, licking his finger and drawing a smiley on the screen. "What are you, deaf? I said You Are A Virgin."_

"_What are you talking about? You raped me, remember? Jesse really hates you because of that. I'd avoid him if I were you."_

_Paul shook his head. "It's Crissi's fault. She's putting images in your head. And the rape thing? Totally wasn't my fault. But I'll tell you more in school. You should wake up, your mom's coming. I'm sorry. And by the way… this has been one of the most civilized conversations we've had." _

I opened my eyes and saw Frodo smiling as he went onto a ship with Galadriel and Elrond and Gandalf but no one was moving. It was on 'pause'. I was already at the end of the Return of the King. Was Paul no longer a threat? What did he mean I was a virgin? And was that a wet, smudgy _smiley_ on the screen?

"Suze! Where are you? We have fifteen minutes until they come!"

Who pressed 'pause' on the TV?

After a few minutes, my mother stepped in front of the TV. She was wearing her best dress and pearls and even did her nails. "There you are! Hurry up! Get dressed into something nice. I had Brad and David wear tuxes. They're coming in ten minutes!"

I got up and as soon as I did, my mom whisked everything away and started dusting the TV. She was mumbling something about "only had a day to prepare this mess, who drew this? It's smearing…" when I raced up the stairs, accidentally bumping into Doc and sending him colliding into a wall.

"Sorry!"

Jesse's POV

I fixed my tie and stared into the mirror. We were supposed to eat dinner with the Ackerman's. Sounds simple enough, but easier said than done. Mama had us all donned in our Sunday best and I straightened up and adjusted my cuffs.

"JESSE!!"

I turned my head and looked at my youngest sister, Tia who was now six years old, who was standing in my doorway. She had long dark hair and dark, expressive eyes. She was wearing a frilly lavender dress with white shoes and hat. It looked to me as if one of my other sisters tried putting makeup on her but Tia hated makeup so it was all smeared. Although sometimes her interrogations were annoying, she was an angelic little girl. That is, until you got to know her and her devious mind. She could plot against me anytime she wished.

"Yes, Tia? What is it?"

"Mammy said that you would help me tie my bows," she took a deep breath; "Murcia, Mérida, Valencia, and Carmen were all busy trying to dress up. They say the brothers are all 'hot', 'sexy', and 'rooty-vicious', except for one. I don't understand; are they on fire? And why would anyone like a rabid tree beast?"

I laughed and beckoned Tia inside my room. She plunked herself onto my bed and sighed. "This is a comfortable bed. Did you ask for it like this so that your girlfriend would enjoy it and get babied?"

I raised an eyebrow. "Tia, what are you talking about?"

She looked so serious. "Mama gave me a speech. I asked her how I came to be. Instead of saying the good Lord sent a stork to drop me like she used to, she told me I was old enough. She said that one day, when I find my truest truer love, we'll have lots of fun during bedtime and then after nine months, there'll be a baby! I asked if it hurt and she nodded but said it was worth a wonderful, beautiful baby like me. I hope that happens real really real soon! She called it," she looked up, squinted her eye and furrowed her brows, trying to recall the word, "hex," she nodded with satisfaction, "hex, that's its. Have you ever done it? Mama mentioned that us DeSilvas may be lambs in the kitchen, but we are tigers in the bedroom!"

I shook my head, slightly shocked. "Let me tie your bows." She turned around and pulled up her long, dark hair. I kneeled down and started to tie a bow.

"You didn't answer my question: Have you ever hexed before?"

I smiled at her young innocent. "No, I haven't."

"But you will, right?"

"I suppose."

"When?"

"After marrying."

"If you do, can I watch and tape it and show my class for show-and-tell?"

"Umm, no."

"Why not?"

"Because it's personal."

"Are you gay?"

"WHAT?" I dropped the ribbon.

"Gay. It's where-"

"I know what it means. Who told you this?"

"Carmen. She thought you were since you never had a girlfriend but you aren't, are you? I mean, I've seen you with a girl. You two were kissing and you were touching her EVERYWHERE. She was really pretty. I like her eyes. Did you hex with her?"

"WHAT??"

"Don't lie, Jesse, I saw you. If you're embarrassed-ed, I don't blame you. I wouldn't like to know that someone was watching you from the bushes but I saw this other guy watching too. He had old man white hair and ice for eyeballs. I said hi to him but he did this to me." Tia raised her middle finger in the air and I quickly covered it. He also said f-"

"Tia, you are learning the wrong things. Forget all this until you're older." But she had mentioned a man with blonde hair and blue eyes. Paul? Was Paul watching us the other day?

"What does this mean?" She raised that finger in the air again. I put it down for her. I was trying to concentrate but Tia kept interrupting me. "Well? What does it mean?!" She used her other hand. I covered her mouth.

"Tia, shhh, don't make so much noise! Mama's going to come in and see you-"

"Jesse? Tia? What are you doing? I'm hearing so much noise-"

My mother stood in the doorway, wearing her gold hoop earrings and necklace. Her eyes narrowed slightly. "Jesse? What are you doing to Tia?"

"Mammy! Jesse won't tell me what this means." She ran to our mother and clutched the hem of our mother's dress. I got to my feet.

"No, Tia, you don't want to-"

"What does this mean?"

My mother looked clueless. I breathed a sigh of relief. So mama didn't know what it meant. I only knew what it meant because of Susannah, her brothers, and some of the books her family owns. Suddenly Carmen, my sixteen year old sister, stood beside our mother. She gasped, covered her mouth, and stood appalled. Then she whispered something to mama.

I shut my eyes. "JESSE! WHAT ARE YOU TEACHING TIA?"

A high voice cut my mother's rage. "Mammy?"

"Yes, amada?" her voice became soft and friendly.

"What does 'fuck you' mean?"

* * *

We (my mother, my father, Tia, who had earned me a slap, Carmen, Valencia, Murcia and Mérida) all walked across the street to Susannah's house. As my father rang the doorbell, I looked around. Her house looked so different when I was…_deceased_. I now looked at things with a new light. Remembering that this was the house where I died, I shuddered slightly.

The door opened and everyone started talking at once.

"Hello and welcome! This is Brad, who is seventeen, and David, who is fifteen. Jake's coming later and my husband Andy…" I noticed David eyeing Valencia. She was smart, like him, but pretty enough to do modeling in her free time. (For the hefty paycheck of 5,000 dollars per session.)

"Hello, I'm Rosa and this is my husband Miguel. These are our children; Tia is six, going into first grade, Murcia and Mérida are twins, both twelve, turning thirteen next week and going into the seventh grade, Valencia is fifteen in three days, going into ninth grade and is a model, Carmen is sixteen and my eldest son is Jesse who is now seventeen." In reality, when it was the eighteen hundreds, I had died at age twenty but somehow, here I was seventeen, turning eighteen soon. For some reason, I had known all this information when I woke up one day and found myself with a family.

I heard Valencia giggle and I looked at her. She was looking up at David and fooling with his hair. I rolled my eyes. _What is this called? Oh yes. Flirting. _"You're David, right?"

"Y-yes." He stammered and adjusted his glasses. "You, you're V-Valencia, r-right?"

"Yes. That is my name."

"It, uh, it's a b-b-bea, a, beau, uh, tiful, err, beautifier, uh, beautiful, yeah! that's it, uh, beautiful name, a…as are you."

"Thank you, that's very sweet."

"Uh…thanks, you are. You, you're so pret-"

"Why is your hair so red?"

"You-you like it?"

She laughed. "No, you have funny hair."

David turned red and walked away inside the house, muttering something about his laundry.

Suddenly we were all ushered inside the house.

We walked in and I looked around, noticing all the pictures of Brad, David, Jake, and… "Where's Susannah?"

Mrs. Ackerman looked at me oddly but the look passed as she smiled warmly. I read her thoughts and they were along the lines of, 'how does he know Suze? Why does he look so familiar? Oh well, I'll ask them two later'. "Oh, she's in her room. Could you go get her, Jesse? Dinner's almost ready."

"Of course," I nodded and started up the stairs.

Suze's POV

Crap, Jesse and his family were coming in two minutes! I took a minute shower, brushed my teeth, and put on a bra and panties. I put on some lip gloss and eye shadow. Distractedly, I threw open my closet. Let's see…want to impress the family…jeans...no...Definite nono…ummm…dress…too fancy…a skirt! Yes! But not Betsey Johnson, I learned my lesson…no leather….something floral. Since I no longer had a roommate, I could a, mess up my room and leave my bras hanging on my doorknob since there wasn't a hot ghost in my room and b, I could change in my room freely. My room had become a mess quite considerably. I pulled out a lavender skirt along with a sleeveless silk blouse. Simple, yet elegant, business-like and feminine. Who knew if his family was like its nineteenth century self.

I shut the blinds and shut the door, not locking it since one, the lock was messed up, and two, they weren't here yet and no one here wanted to see me in the buff. Plus nobody ever came into my room, only my mom. I threw my skirt and jeans onto the floor and faced the window. Realizing that my bra straps would show if I didn't switch bras, I rummaged through my drawers until I found a strapless bra. I just unhooked my other bra and was about to put on my other bra when I heard the doorknob turn. I turned to see who it was and quickly turned.

"Susannah? Is everything all…?" his voice trailed off and I could figure out why. I felt my cheeks burn. Oh. Great.

"Um, Jesse? Ever hear of knocking?"

Jesse's POV

Since I didn't hear any commotion in Susannah's room, I thought she was in her bathroom. I opened the door and saw Susannah's bare back. I rendered myself speechless as I gawked at her back.

"Um, Jesse, ever hear of knocking?" she asked, and I could feel her embarrassment as she quickly hooked her bra, catching her hair. She tugged at the strands but they still caught.

"Let me help," I offered as I walked over towards her and I gently pulled out the hair. "By the way, dinner's almost ready."

She said her thanks and I turned around to leave when a little figure stood in the doorway, blocking my exit, hands on her hips. She looked at Susannah, then me. Then she took one huge gulp of air.

"Tia...don't, it's not what it-" I tried to cover her mouth but she dodged my hand and laughed wickedly.

"You are in so much trouble. MOOOOOOOOMMMMAAAA! JESSSSSEEE'S WITH A GIRL!!! THE PRETTY GIRL IS THE ONE I SAW JESSE WITH YESTERDAY. SHE'S ONLY IN HER SWIMSUIT THAT DON'T MATCH, AND THE BOTTOM PIECE IS FRILLY!"

I felt myself go red. "Tia! We didn't do anything! I just got up here; I would not have the _TIME_ to do anything! TIA! TIA!"

Suze's POV

Okay, that was way exaggerated. We didn't do anything! Much to my chagrin. But the kid got the attention of BOTH our families. I blushed, realizing that I was still in my bra and panties. What an entrance. "Hi, I'm Susannah Simon, the girl who faked sick and went out on a little rendezvous with your bootylicious son. I've been raped and have I ever mentioned that your son has the _sexiest ass_??" I looked around and quickly put on a t-shirt and shorts.

No. Not a great introduction.

"Nombre de dios, Jesse, what is Tia yelling about now?"

"SUZE! WHAT IN GOD'S NAME IS GOING ON?"

"Mommy, this is the girl I saw him with yesterday. They drove somewhere in swim stuffs and back and they were kissing and making out…or is it making love? Oh well."

"Ah…so this is the mysterious visitor you saw…"

"PEOPLE! LET ME GET DRESSED PROPERLY-"

"Without the help of my brother, please."

"Carmen!"

"-AND I WILL EXPLAIN EVERYTHING."

"We'll see that you do. Jesse, son, we need to talk. NOW."

"Yes, papa."

There goes my reputation. Hi, I'm Suze. The slut.

…_so not._

Dressed in my skirt and all make-upped, I sat down with David, Brad, and my mom. Jake was in the kitchen helping Andy out with the cooking. Jesse's family was across the coffee table.

"Hey, I'm Susannah Simon, pleased to meet you all." I shook hands with the de Silva's. I looked at his parents. Mr. de Silva was clean shaved and resembled Jesse, with warm brown eyes and tan skin. Only, whenever he looked at me, that warm fuzzy look in his eyes would vanish and be replaced with this, "No whores in the house" look. But, he also looked at Jesse like that so maybe it wasn't all my fault…? He smiled slightly as I shook his hand. Mrs. de Silva was beautiful. She had ebony black hair and a fair complexion, and surprisingly, no wrinkles for a woman her age, but then again, she was only how old? Same reaction with the missus, only her jaw was tenser.

"Suze, what is going on?" Mom wasn't angry, no, she was furious. Her thoughts were probably 'why didn't Suze tell me about him so I could bombard him with photographs as evidence that my daughter went out with a member of the opposite gender' but whatever.

Jesse opened his mouth but my mom cut him off. "No, Jesse, let Suze explain."

"First question: How do you know Jesse already? Is Tia right about the beach thing?"

"Well…yes. I wasn't feeling well but you made me go meet everyone. So I went outside and met up with Jesse. I knew him from… Pebble Beach and we have been secretly going out for over a year. And yes, that girl is right; I met up with him and it had been a while and I hugged him and he kissed me. Then we went to the beach. Today, you woke me up. Then I tried to get dressed but my dress had a bare back and I needed a strapless bra so…"

"Wait_,-what did you just say??"_

"Uh…I didn't finish. So I hooked it by myself, yeah, and then Jesse came in and Tia thought something was going on when there was really nothing."

"But I SAW her in only a swimsuit!"

"Darling, maybe that was yesterday."

Suze's POV

This was so embarrassing. It was like family crisis group counseling, except we were ALL in the same room.

"Well, what do you have to say of yourself?" Mr. de Silva asked Jesse. Jesse stared at the floor.

"He doesn't like men, we know that now." Carmen said as she studied her pink nails. One year older than her, and I felt like the younger one. Carmen wore so much makeup, she rivaled Kelly. Well, hon, just imagine in ten years…you'll be so wrinkly…

"Nothing happened." Jesse said, "Tia didn't know what she saw. And I am not gay."

"She's pretty. That's what I saw." Tia chirped and I blushed slightly.

"Jesse, I'm proud of you. You have a girlfriend!" Carmen tossed aside her emery board and hugged Jesse.

Suddenly Mr. de Silva slapped Jesse back. "I have to teach you how to…" he paused as Tia took out a Blues clues notebook and pen.

Suze's POV

Stomach stuffed, I walked down the hall. Suddenly I stopped and peered around the corner. Clothes were strewn all over and in the middle of it all was David and Valencia. This I had to watch.

* * *

Doc's POV

**(A/N: I was watching the Olympics when this commercial for GE, I think, came up with this commercial; sexy supermodel and geek meet at laundry place. Bump into each other and fall in love and get the perfect kid. Hehe… Doc's love story is based on a commercial. Wow…) **

I folded my clothes neatly; a trait taught by Mom mom when I was little. But it was all really in vain since the clothes ended up on the ground, I mostly did it out of habit. I put my piles into a laundry basket and shut the dryer door. Finding another sock, I dug around until I found the matching one and tossed it in. Score. I went into the hallway and, humming Fugue in G Minor by Bach, started to turn a corner when I ran into someone. I fell and the basket left my hands. Man, I just did the laundry. I landed on my back and stared at the ceiling. What lovely and intricate tiling…dad sure did do a great job on the house. Wait…is that the basket about to land on-

"OUCH!"

Realizing that I had bumped into someone, I tipped the basket off my face and neck and stared at a lump of plaid boxers that was moving. An arm shot out and grabbed at one of the many pairs on his/her head. Suddenly, he/she moaned.

Wow, the attacker sure sounded… feminine. I sat up and my jaw dropped as the many articles of clothing slid to the floor. There, amidst the clothes, sat a beautiful Aphrodite with…whoa…gray eyes and a pair of underwear on her head. She looked at me blearily. "Huh. I was attacked by underwear." It was Valencia!! "Where's David? I didn't get to apologize to David after that rude remark I made earlier." Her eyes focused.

"David!"

I felt the tips of my ears turn red and suddenly I felt that nerdiness kick in.

"Hello, Valencia." Wow, I didn't stutter.

"I didn't get to apologize to you after dinner."

"I know, you just said that."

"Oh?" She scrunched up her face. "Oh! I'm," her face saddened, "I'm sorry for being so mean. It's just that…I've never seen a redhead before."

I straightened my glasses and when I noticed how dirty they were, I took them off and started wiping them off.

"Look up." She said sharply. I did, and realized how blurry she looked. "You're eyes are a pretty color. Why do you wear glasses?"

I looked at the spot that I thought was her face. "I can't see without them."

"Don't wear them, you looked better without them."

I blushed. "Thanks. But, I don't think so."

"Wear contacts!"

"I don't have any."

"I'll get you them for your present, then, what's your vision?"

"That's not necessary."

She glared at me.

"…Fine."

Suze's POV

So Doc had a chance at romance. This was going to be fun. I trudged up the stairs and met Jesse in my bedroom, as arranged.

"How humiliating was that."

He looked up and grinned lopsidedly. "Slightly, yes, but we can mope over that later."

Jesse bent lower to kiss me when I noticed the door to my room swing open.

Jesse groaned. "Tia, inconspicuous means not noticeable. Can't you mind your business? What do they teach you in Sunday school?"

My eyes narrowed as I stared at the open door. Huh. "Jesse?"

He continued to rant and rave in a similar manner.

"Jesse?

"Yes, querida?"

"I don't see anyone…"

He looked up, startled, and walked to the now shut door, which had a note taped on it. He started to read it aloud:

"Suze, I'm watching you, be careful, you might end up like me."

We looked at each other and said, "Crissi."


	3. Ch 3 Getting Started With the Facts

Ch Three

A/N: I had just updated my story and like, no reviews. That really hurt. But then again, I deleted my Author's Note that was considered the "First" chapter. L

Wow that was weird, a moment of weirdness. Now that's over. Keep reading!

* * *

People, here's a checklist; did you read chapter two?

* * *

After brushing my teeth, I went to bed, groggy. I couldn't remember what happened.

First, Jesse and I talked…

Then what?

I went under the covers and sighed. Something wasn't right. I couldn't remember what happened after Jesse left, after his family left. I remember tripping down the stairs, couldn't be amnesia, so-

Was I alone? I paused.

No I wasn't.

"Crissi, come out, I know you're here somewhere."

I heard laughter and suddenly, she was in my room, two feet in front of me, glowing.

Whoa…was she, like, d-

"Yeah, I'm dead, Suzie, no duh. Why else would I be after you?"

I sat up. "What do you want from me? Jesse?"

"No, you bitch, I want you this time."

I frowned. After a long silence, I said, "You're not a lesbian, are you?"

I felt a punch land on my nose and my hands flew up to my face; blood. A nosebleed, perhaps? She wasn't into jokes, was she?

"No, you idiot. Of course not. I'm still after Jesse, but I'll need you."

'I need you?' Personally, I took that as further proof of her lesbian-ness but I didn't think that reminding her would be a great idea. "I'm not going to let you have him."

"Tsk, tsk, such a territorial bitch…didn't Paul teach you anything?"

"What about Paul?" I demanded, I pinched my nose, tilted my nose up and felt the blood go down my throat. I choked and started coughing.

She just laughed, thumped my back, causing me to pitch headfirst into my blanket, then she left.

I don't know how long I sat like that, keeled over like some plush toy at the circus, even though I knew she was gone because, well, the silence that followed and the knock on my window an hour or whatever later.

"Susannah! Susannah! Open your window!"

I sat up and walked over to my window, opened it, and let him in.

"Did you get a visitor?"

I nodded, checking my nosebleed. It was gone, save for the dried blood caked all over my face. I walked into the bathroom, letting Jesse follow me. I turned the faucet and grabbed a towel.

"Susannah! Are you all right?"

Ignoring him for the moment, I didn't say anything and dipped the corner of the towel into the steady stream of lukewarm water. After bustling around my bathroom for five minutes in silence, I said, "I'm fine, Jesse, it was just a nosebleed." I dabbed at my nose gently. Then I squeezed at my nose; I think she broke my nasal cartilage. Cursing slightly, I looked into the mirror, making sure my nose wasn't going to heal crooked.

"I think she broke my cartilage." I ogled at my nose, turning it this way and that.

Jesse, eyes wide, said, "What!"

Then, in a lower more ominous tone, he said, "Was this Paul's doing?"

I stared at him. "No! Did…did he visit you because I have not seen him since then."

"Yes, but it's not a problem. I don't know if it's broken, but that's alright."

"Let me see your nose."

"No! I'm okay. Really!"

Disregarding my declarations of health, he walked over to me and pushed me onto the toilet, where I was forced to sit on the closed lid. He grabbed the towel out of my hand, tilted my head upwards and continued to dab at my nose, wiping off the blood, ever so gently so that I didn't feel anything. How romantic, my boyfriend cleaning up my nosebleed for me. What we _should_ be doing is making out.

"Now on to more pressing matters; what happened to you?"

I watched him get up and scrub the towel in the sink, rinsing away the blood. Then he walked back towards me, kneeled in front of me, and continued to check out my nose.

"I told you, I was molested." By a sex-craved girl, I failed to add. She is _so_ a lesbian, no matter how she denies it!

"Does it hurt?"

I nodded, trying to act all innocent and everything, and suddenly he said, "Good. Now you need to tell me about your surprise visitor. Well? What did she say to you?"

Wait. How did he know it was a she?

"If a girl says she wants you, and you're a girl, does that mean she's a lesbo?"

Jesse frowned. "A…_lesbo_? I do not know what that is, but I assure you, she was probably referring to something else." In Jesse-land, there is no such thing as Lesbians.

"Did you meet up with her too?"

I saw Jesse's dark eyes darken as he said, "Yes."

He waved my question aside though as he continued on by saying, "That doesn't matter. What matters," he flicked the tip of my nose, "is your nose. Thankfully, she did not break your, what did you call it? Cartilage?" And he kissed me there. I couldn't help it; I giggled.

* * *

We emerged from the bathroom. Him in his boxers and a tee, me in my pajamas.

"I think we should sleep in the same room."

"I agree."

"You know, not in the same bed, but, yeah."

"I agree."

"It'll be safer."

"I agree."

"Not that I'm scared of Crissi…"

"I agree."

"So I guess I can get the sleeping bag."

"I agree."

"And you can get the bed."

"I don't agree."

I looked at him. "Well then…what do you propose?"

"I think you should get the bed, and I get the sleeping bag."

"I won't allow it."

"And I won't allow you sleeping on the floor."

That's why ten minutes later we were both in the same bed. To think that Jesse didn't mind was beyond me. I guess he figured it was a way of protecting me. I started inching towards him.

"Susannah, don't get any ideas," he mumbled and he took off his shirt.

_Man…

* * *

_

I woke up to sunshine streaming through my open window. And to the fact that Jesse's arms were around my waist. And to his face was buried in my chest. Did I mention that his legs were wrapped around me? Other than all that, I was really good.

Actually, thanks to this, I was more than good. He stirred and I smiled. He was so hott Seriously, I couldn't help but brush his hair off his face, which was kind of hard. You know, the fact that his face was between my err, intimate parts, and I honestly didn't want to move him. I mean, haven't I waited for a moment even _close_ to this since…_ever?_ I've stayed virgin for this guy! Well, except for that time, but that was beyond my control. And what was with Paul saying I was still a virgin?

I was ranting and raving mentally…is this good for my mind?

I noticed Jesse laughing. In his sleep.

Is that _possible?_

Suddenly, his eyes opened. I could tell because his eyes were against my, err, boobs and his long eyelashes brushed against me. He pushed himself off me.

"Susannah, you talk in your head mentally, I thought talking fast aloud was enough."

I stared. "You've been…_eavesdropping _onmy_ brain?_"

His eyes were full of mirth. "Perhaps."

TWACK.

Jesse rubbed his jaw. "You didn't have to slap me. I thought women in this era did not mind when a man did something obscene. Not that I'm not used to this, but…"

"Seriously, Jesse! You better believe that women nowadays still slap guys." I glared at him. I felt my cheeks heat up. He read my thoughts. And at the moment, I was thinking of the most embarrassing!

Jesse's expression turned sober. "But Susannah, we should do something about Crissi."

"I agree. How about we exorcise her?"

Jesse shook his head. "No, I was thinking, if she's honestly dead, we should visither home."


	4. Ch 4 Going Somewhere

Ch 4 An Unpleasant Visiting

"Are you on crack?" I asked as we both got dressed, "If her ghost is there, she is SO going to kill me!"

Seriously, didn't I mean _anything_ to this guy? It was practically an assisted suicide…or homicide. Whatever. What he was trying to do was convince me to go to Crissi's **house.** As if that isn't scary enough! Imagine facing her aunt, or, or…even worse;

Herself.

I pulled a pair of shorts over my recently shaved legs, tanned from the beach trip we went on. "Jesse, don't do this to me."

He tugged on his shirt sleeve, and his muscles went taut as he slid his element t-shirt on. "Susannah," he said, his voice muffled, "it's for the best. We need to find out what Crissi plans on doing. I know a girl like her would keep a diary."

I was silent as I studied his six pack, covered in a fine layer of fuzz. Then his shirt covered it. I sighed as I fixed my hair, fluffing it up, showering it with mousse, and spraying hair spray in it. I fixed it into the desired style and I gazed into the mirror. It was still an incredible mess. I changed out of a pajama top into a tank top.

"But Jesse, seriously, don't do this. We can just find out the next time she comes and sabotages me!" I struggled to find the right, persuasive words, but honestly, what could persuade Jesse? "I mean, we should go school shopping! You know, supplies, folders, paper, pencils, new outfits, don the school wear, ditch the swim gear, you know?"

He plainly ignored me. "Where does she live?" He yanked on his extremely baggy shorts, the khaki kind that went past the knees. "Jesu Cristo, when I woke up alive for the third time," I was assuming the first was when he was born) "I didn't know men these days wore such, large trousers." He looked around, trying to find a belt because his shorts kept slipping and showing me his cute plaid boxers. "I will never get used to this change."

I sighed again and adjusted my top. "School's in two days! Give me a break and buy supplies. Have you even registered?"

Jesse, for the first time, looked at me as he straightened up. "The Church has ways. Father Dominic has granted my family approval and had us registered the day we moved in."

I rolled my eyes. The Church has ways, my ass. "Jesse, don't lie." I fixed my sports bra strap.

He blinked. "Why would I lie?" Shaking his head, he said, "Querida, you need to have a little more faith in me. You just said I lied, and, do you not think that I'll protect you?" he gave me his best puppy-dog-eyes look. I opened my mouth to protest, but Jesse closed the distance between us and gently gave me a kiss.

"I'm trying to save you, Susannah, querida. Will you go with me? Juro que protegeré a mi querida. I swear I'll protect my darling querida. Te quiero… te quiero para perderle demasiado…I love you too much to lose you," he murmured against my lips, "come with me."

"Jesse…don't seduce me like this…that's _my_ job…"

He whispered something in my ear. I squealed in surprise.

"Oh Yeah! I'm coming!"

We walked on Scenic Drive, the street my mom told me Crissi lived on.

"Susannah, I don't want you associating with her, no matter blood, she's a bad egg, all right?" she had warned.

"Sure mom," like I'd _want_ to hang out with her.

"She's serving jail time, but if you want, bring these cookies to your poor aunt. She might not be home, but just leave them on the porch."

And that's exactly what I did.

I found myself, three hours later, (Andy fed us breakfast) walking the long way to Crissi's home with the love of my life. As we walked, (Jesse and I) I nibbled on the deliciously chewy chocolate chip cookies Andy made. Even though he's a gourmet chef, he still makes killer cookies.

Why did the street name sound so familiar? And why was I so scared to go on it? Suddenly I knew. I wasn't scared of Crissi, Jesse know that for a fact, no, it was the fact that Paul lived on this street. Drop dead gorgeous Paul, but compared to Jesse, Jesse was Adonis. Jesse didn't know Paul lived on this street. That's why he didn't know why I was so worried about this whole rendezvous. I shuddered slightly, then remembered the queer message Paul told me. I wasn't a virgin? How was that possible?

Jesse was quiet the whole long walk to Scenic Drive. Luckily, I was wearing my old classic Reeboks, unlike my Jimmy Choos last time. I looked up at him. He was walking right next to me, but I felt as though we were so far apart. He wasn't even talking to me! From his facial expression, he was deep in thought, and every so often he'd kiss the top of my head, or, even worse, scruff up my hair. Even though he didn't notice, every so often I'd look at him.

Suddenly he stopped. "24 Scenic Drive. Right here."

I peered around him towards the other side of the street. Way at the end of the street, I saw Paul's house, near the brink. On the other side of Jesse, however, was 24 Scenic Drive. Crissi's home. I didn't know she lived so close to Paul.

Jesse, without even stopping, went up to the front door and rang the doorbell. Nothing. There was no movement inside, and from the looks of it, no one had been taking care of the house. Where was my aunt?

I peered into the front window and saw only darkness.

Jesse frowned, "It's the Sabbath! What would a person be doing on the day of rest? It's Saturday!" (A/N: I get confused about the Sabbath, because some Catholic people consider it Sunday, Jews and others consider it Saturday. I'll call it Saturday for now because school was in two days.)

He looked at the house. "Perhaps another day?"

I walked right past him. "Move."

He quirked an eyebrow. "Susannah? What are you doing…"

I slid my mom's credit card between the door and doorframe. Nada. I pocketed the Visa.

"Susannah…"

BAM!

I kicked the door wide open and watched the wood split apart.

Jesse's eyes went wide. "Mierda! SUSANNAH!"

I shrugged, "They won't notice." Then I promptly walked inside. I've been arrested before, but after meeting Carmel-By-The-Sea police, they weren't going to notice a freaking door being broken down. Well, if they did, they could just eat the cookies. They were awesomely delectable!

Besides the fact that his girlfriend just karate chopped the door open, and that she just trespassed on someone, even if they were family, else's property, Jesse wasn't just worried

He was pissed off, well, in better terms, worried if I'd make it to heaven.

This time, I ignored him as I entered the huge estate and fit the door back on its hinges. It lamely went crooked. Ah, it was only oak. Jesse, obviously read my thoughts and proclaimed that that was a perfectly good tree that I had just put to waste.

Yeah, okay, but where's the resentment towards Crissi?

Jesse, reading my thoughts again, told me that although Crissi was a ramera, (What the hell?) and we should all have mercy and forgive the poor thing, and pray that God will accept her soul. My thoughts were, Ha! My ass.

Jesse, upon hearing my thoughts for the third time, muttered something else and stalked off. I only caught the words, "obviously…her monthlies." I was assuming he was talking about my period.

I didn't know why we kept debating like this, but for the time being, I kept that to myself.

I walked up the stairs. "Jesse?"

"Yes, querida?"

"What do you think we'll find here?"

He was silent and then said, "I don't know."

(A/N: If you need a reminder on Crissi's room, go to Chapter 16 New Cousin)

We looked in every room, save for the one for to the far right of the hallway. I walked towards it, my footsteps muffled by the thick carpeting. I took one look at the door and knew it was Crissi's. From the derogatory, profane, sexual posters on the door, I just knew. Jesse and I looked at each other and blushed, looking the other way again, knowing that we were both still virgins. There was nothing wrong about that, just the fact that this door had different kama sutra positions and stuff like that and, well, we were boyfriend/girlfriend on a ten degree level…didn't we deserve some credit? Also, there was a poster that illustrated a banana cut like a dick next to a shoe that said, "I'll do it if it's bigger than your shoe size". I was so embarrassed to be this sex-starved maniac's cousin. But if she wasn't a lesbian, was she bi?

I tried to open the door. Locked. Using the credit card again, (Thank God she wasn't shopping today!) I slid it between the frame and door and heard a satisfying click. I turned the doorknob and was startled that it was a skull-shaped doorknob. I opened the door and Jesse and I both gasped.

The walls were black, covered with huge posters of Happy Bunny, and all this other stuff, no comment. Everything was black, and as we shut the door behind us, gingerly, I couldn't help but hyperventilate. I flipped on the light switch and we purple fluorescent lighting, causing my white Reeboks to glow purple, shone on us. It felt so…weird. Everything was neon with the lighting. We turned off the lights and were faced with reality. Where to look?

For one, everything in her walk-in closet was black and revealing. Fishnets hung on a rack, there were corsets, spandex leggings, hooker boots, peek-a-boo bras, thongs, g-strings, mini-skirts, chains, mesh, and all this other rubbish was there, you name anything that was related to table dancing and yup, she had it.

Everything was black, or gothic. I was troubled and glad that God was watching over me. I heaved a shudder.

"Let's find that diary," I said. Jesse only nodded and we searched together.

Going through drawer number one, I found all these bondage tools; whips, handcuffs, chains, leashes, collars, everything. I went through it gingerly. Condoms, a vibrator, some sort of dildo looking thing, the newest issue of playgirl and playboy (Ewww…I tell you; bisexual!). I flipped through photos and realized that she was a porno star. Seriously, they were disgusting. Blowjobs, all this semen, bestiality, and a real banana in a SUPER wrong hole were pictured. The rest I didn't even WANT to look at. I just threw them out.

Disgusted, I slammed the drawer shut. "Anything, Jesse?"

Jesse mumbled something inaudible and shuffled around the surprisingly clean room even more. I sighed, for the umpteenth time that hour, and went through her bookcase. I saw books on Wicca, Voodoo, "The Gothic Bible", Sex, Satanic spells, a Tarot deck, and other nonsensical gothic topics.

I suddenly noticed a little black book sticking out of the shelf. I had to take down three sex books just to get to it. It was locked.

"Jesse! I found something!"

I flipped it over. Written on it was the name, "Crissandra Giselle Simon."

Jesse came over and we gawked at it. "Should we open it?" I whispered.

"I suppose, that's what we came for, isn't it?" Jesse whispered back.

"How do I get it open?"

"Use your head."

"Why are we whispering?"

"ME? All I did was respond in the same tone. You were the one whispering for no apparent reason," Jesse straightened up and smiled, "let's do this." Jesse held up what looked like a key…a key that matched the lock exactly!

We opened it, and read through the latest entries, where we came in.

Dear Diary,

It was so fun last night! I used my picture-phone and took a picture of that HOTT ghost Jesse. Too bad he's taken, by a twin, no less. Too bad, I would have liked screwing him every moment I could; he wouldn't be able to stand straight for weeks! I'll get him, no worries, and in the meantime, I can still jack off of the picture I took of him. Seriously, poor Suzie-woozie, she won't know what hit her.

I'm going to go fantasize about Jesse more, TTFN, Crissi.

Dear Diary,

I predict the future and Suze is coming with Jesse. I just saw them kiss passionately, but not that fanatically. Jesse is so dense to not realize that Suze likes him- a lot. What a sad story. She is way too shy. If I were her, I'd put up a show. (you know what I mean) I mean, come on. He's dead, get a life and lose your virginity why don't you Suze because Jesse is just so damn delicious! Way hotter than Sean, why'd I go out with him? Yeah, he's great at-yeah but still he's not all that. He was not worth what I had to do in order to get him. You do know that I'm not the only mediator back home. Oooh no…

I have the greatest idea: Exorcize Sean and then make Jesse be mine! I'm glad I moved. Not only to get away from-well, I shouldn't say because in case the police find this, they will never know. Onto subject; I mean, it's so obvious that Jesse's trying to resist temptation but I KNOW he wants her, so I'll just threaten to kill Suze and he'll have to be mine. Or I can just impersonate Suze. Even though I had to kill Sean's Girlfriend, (THERE! IT'S OUT, I KILLED HIS FUCKING GIRLFRIEND TO GET TO HIM) it was worth it; now it's just a waste on my record. Now what about Suzie...she has no idea on what I did to Jesse. Ok, I talked to him, hit on him, he refused, end of story. Sigh, I was so close. Let's just say Jesse WILL fall for me...

In due time, darling diary, in due time.

When I kill Suze, I'll exorcise her and then Jesse will be mine. Goody... I love a good kill. With resistance and LOTS of blood shed. Got to go, Suze and hottie are here. Sean doesn't approve of it but do I care? PS, I haven't heard from his GF since I came.  
Crissi

Dear Diary,

I'm worried, for the first time, because Katrina. Katrina knows I'm in Cali, and this isn't good. She's after me. Hopefully, she'll get me and Suzie-poo confused. I better pack up soon and leave, taking my money, extra tampons, and my sexuality with me. I hate my periods, now I'm on break.

Shit, my mom, g2g, ciao!

Diary: the police are coming for me. I have to leave. I have to get away from here, but not so fast; I'm taking Suzie, and with the help of an unwilling Paul, we're going to get Suzie to 'fess up and hand Jesse boy over. I predicted the future, so I know that this is the last time I'll be writing in you. I'll put you somewhere safe, no worries.

Fare thee well, Diary.

The last entry ended with a fancy signature, dated on the day I was kidnapped. The day Crissi died.

We just sat there, on her bed, as the sun started to slant through the windows.

Finally, I spoke. "What a waste of effort!"

Jesse, who had his face in his hands, was hunched over on the bed. He peered out of one of the gaps his hands made.

"A waste of effort? What are you talking about?"

Too weary for explanations, I just reached for his hand. He looked at it, smiled, and took it, and we both walked back home, taking the cookies with us. Halfway home, he kissed me gently.

"Nada es un desecho del esfuerzo, querida, Sólo cuando nosotros no tuvimos nada buscar. Nothing's a waste of effort, querida, only when we had nothing to look for."


	5. Ch 5 It's Good to Know

Ch 5

A/N: warning, this chapter is quite gory.

I watched as Jesse walked slowly across the street, head bent down, ignoring me, still deep in thought. I wondered what he was thinking about, but I couldn't read his thoughts. They were too…I guess _deep_ that I couldn't.

His thoughts, I mean.

I went inside and slowly shut the door and bolted it after I saw that Jesse went inside the house. I kicked off my shoes and walked barefoot to the dining room, ready for dinner.

"Mom! Andy! David! I'm home! Anyone?" I stopped yelling when I noticed that no one was home. Strange. I wandered into the kitchen and saw a sign pointing to the fridge. Pinned to it was a note. I walked towards it and yanked it off.

"Suzie:

Went out with David and Andy for cuisine, be back around 10 because David has a science presentation at the Science Center. Brad is at a friend's house and won't be back until school starts. Lasagna on the stovetop, invite Jesse over if he's hungry, or, if you get lonely, ;). PS: Don't forget the rubber!

Mom"

Why does she _do_ that?

I shuddered and looked at the clock; 6:15. I had a long time to go before anyone came home. I checked the stove and uncovered the strangely metallic smelling lasagna, then shoved it in for a minute forty. While it heated up, I pulled out a chair and started to read the paper. Stupid? Of course. Unlike me? Duh, but I had my reasons.

I skimmed through the articles, most about celebrities, sports, political crap, local news…then something caught my eye.

I shifted in my seat and read exactly what I thought would happen as the lasagna started popping.

_Strange occurrences happened yesterday, August 28th. At the mission in Carmel, there was a phenomenal form of vandalism. The police confirmed that indeed, nothing was stolen and it was not a break-in, but something was spray painted on the wall. It read: _Here, at the message part, it was ripped out raggedly. I stared at the empty slot where I could see a Marshall Field's ad behind it. What did the message say? _A spray can was found three feet away from the crime site, but there were no fingerprints. Police aren't sure who vandalized the mission, but if you have any leads, please contact the police station nearest you with a complete report. "The mission will be starting school in two days, no matter what," claims Father Dominic, the principal and priest of the mission. _

Another part below this article was something that also caught my attention. I read one sentence then stopped. _At the same spot, a boy was found near the site, dead, completely drained of blood- _

I stopped reading. Although it was an article I didn't want to read, I had to admit, it gave all the detailing I needed. Crissi was still after me, wasn't she? She was involved in the unknown vandalism and the slaughter of a boy. I went through our mail that we got with our newspaper. I came across two things that interested me; one was our school tabloid, the other was a blank, yellowing envelope. My fingers trembled slightly as I picked it up.

It was completely blank. I shuddered.

_Oh, shit, this is probably from Crissi… _

I started to open the envelope slowly, taking my time. I pulled out the letter. It was ordinary paper, but when I opened it I realized what the glued part on the paper was from; there it was, the missing part to the article I was reading. I matched it with the column I was reading, piece for piece like a puzzle. I stifled a cry:

"Suzie, watch ur back. I AM watching u, I kno where u live, I know" the newspaper clipping ended and was replaced with handwriting and it said, " ur in ur kitchen. And I can see u from my seat at the hottub. I am watching u. I'm waiting for you. And I'm going to get u and watch u hang and laugh at ur face as I rip and slash at u while ur still alive."

The timer beeped and I jumped. I walked over and opened the microwave and saw that the lasagna had exploded, revealing that inside the lasagna was something red, bursting out all over the inside of the microwave. The red color dripped from the microwave top.

I felt like gagging. _It's just blood from the raw chicken that Andy didn't cook all the way or, it's just the blood from the chicken in the fridge that ended up somehow in the fully cooked lasagna! _I opened the fridge and saw that the plastic around the chicken was unopened. I twisted around quickly and refocused my gaze back to the lasagna.

Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod!

In my mind flashed the article that I only read a sentence from: _At the same spot, a boy was found near the site, dead, completely drained of blood- _

I dropped the letter as if it were a cockroach and screamed a bloodcurdling scream and backed away from the microwave, knocking my chair over. Was this the boy's blood? I looked all around, my hands supporting my gaping mouth. Where is that harassing bitch? I looked at the window. It was ninety degrees outside, but the windows were fogged up. I saw an invisible finger writing on the glass. I watched mesmerized as the finger slowly wrote each letter clearly:

"I SEE U SCREAMING. UR SCARED. MAYBE UR NOT SCARED, BUT U WILL BE. BUT NO WORRIES, JESSE WILL BE SAFE WITH ME. I'M IN UR HOUSE, SUZIE, AND U CAN'T SEE ME. HAHA. I'M GONNA KILL U. HAHA. AND NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW I MURDERED U. NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW THAT I CHOKED U WITH UR ENTRAILS AND DRANK UR BLOOD. NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW THAT A DEAD GIRL KILLED HER MOTHAFUKIN COUSIN, WITH THE HELP OF SOMEONE'S PAST FIANCÉE!"

I shut my eyes and ran from the kitchen as I heard the glass sliding door open behind me.

"SUZIE! I'M HOME!" There was cruel, sardonic laughter, and heavy footsteps heading towards me. "What's the matter, pretty girl? I'm not good enough for you? Not good enough for Jesse? Don't wanna play? Don't wanna face me, cousin, don't wanna die?" More laughter. I ran harder, as fast as I could. I turned the corner and ran even faster, the front door in my view.

Damn, where's Jesse when u need him-?

I ran into something solid.

NO!

Before I could react and dunk or something, I was punched in the temple.

Hard.

I didn't know she'd punch me!

I blinked back blood, and saw her leaning against the wall, one foot against the wall, checking her un-ruined black nails and fist.

"Hey Suzie…" she pushed back her hair, reapplied some black lipstick, and looked at me. "How's your **life**? I'd tell you how mine is going, but-" She let out a bark, or, laugh, "I don't have one! Thanks to YOU!" She advanced on me.

I looked around. What were my chances of escaping without a fight, or calling the police?

She backed me into the hallway, pushing me further away from the door.

"You're a stupid, good for nothing, motherfuking bitch, who-"

I continued ignoring her as my blood dripped on the hardwood floor. Could I get past the cow?

"-too fucked up to-"

No, I couldn't. Maybe if I-

"-too busy messing with my fuked up life-"

I sighed silently. Would she ever stop swearing?

"-I'm **WAY** more powerful than you-"

Psh. Yeah right.

"-fuking poser, jocking off me and stealing my future boyfriend-"

I looked at her and couldn't believe what she just said!

"-just let me kill u so we can get this over with."

That stopped my pensive thoughts. I was flippin' ticked off.

"Crissi, you're seriously going to kill me? What did _I_ ever do to you?"

She glared at me. "Hell yeah! You took EVERYTHING I HAD AWAY FROM ME!"

I frowned. "Crissi, hate to break it to you, _hon, _but you had no life, okay? You were a whore who sucked at everything else but blowjobs. You tried to steal my boyfriend away from me, and now you're trying to kill me. What the heck's your prob-"

She tried to hit me again, but I was ready this time. As her usual predictable self, I knew what her nonexistent conscious was telling her. She wasn't going to use the element of surprise on me again.

I dodged, and when she met nothing but air, I quickly crouched back against my legs and grabbed her wrist and jerked it towards me. She went flying over me and using my hands to support me, I kicked up and made contact with her torso. She went sprawling and I quickly jumped up on my feet. I ran at her and slammed my heel into her back on a pressure point. She screamed, and quickly vanished leaving me alone with a mess I couldn't explain.

"I DIDN'T EVEN GET TO EAT MY DINNER YET!" I yelled towards the ceiling at nothing. I had to do something to protect me. She was going to hurt me. She was going to come back. I didn't want a ticked off ghost after me. Would she kill me if my family was around?

The phone rang. In my mind, I thought of every horror movie where the girl gets a phone call and dies afterwards. (The Ring, Scream…) I frown again and hesitated, then picked up the receiver slowly. "…Hello?"

I heard static in the background. "Hey, Suzie?"

I breathed a sigh of relief, the tension in my neck and sore thighs easing a little. "Mom."

"Hey sweetie-"

"So glad it's you! Man, when are you coming home because I am SO lonely right now and I-"

"-we won't be back until tomorrow because David won first place and we have to go send it to Sacramento in the annual Californian Science Competition. Will you be all right? I'm so glad we still have two days left until school, or else we wouldn't be able to do this for David! I'm so excited! I'm extremely proud of him!"

My breath caught. "What…when will you be back?" I whispered apprehensively. My palms started to sweat.

"We'll be back by Sunday night, that way we can get David to school because we already went supply shopping. Is that all right with you?"

What else could I say? "Yeah…it's fine."

Mom started to say something else, and then she hung up. I did too, and started to cry. I was falling apart. Oh God, she was going to kill me.

"SUSANNAH!"

I jerked around and wiped my eyes. I smiled widely. "JESSE!"

"Querida, are you all right? I felt that something was wrong so I came to check." His eyes roamed around and saw the scene. "What happened?" he breathed. Jesse rushed to me and held my arms upright, his grip on my arms tight and he pulled me up. "Querida, what happened? Tell me!"

He gave me a gentle shake and I tilted my head back, staring at his face. So handsome…he noticed my gaze stop at his mouth and almost instantly, he gave me a deep, passionate kiss.

"Querida," he said hoarsely, "what's wrong?" So I reviewed everything in exact detailing. He read my mind and stopped breathing. "YOU ARE NOT TO STAY ALONE! We're going to call the police about the lasagna. In the meantime, you are to sleep next to me instead of here, do you hear me? It's too dangerous." He picked me up and carried me to my room. "Get your belongings; you're to stay in my home."

I just smiled weakly and said, "So is it okay if I spend the night?"

He looked lovingly at me. "Susannah, it would be okay if you stayed with me forever." He said something else in Spanish, maybe it was "Usted es seguro ahora" or something, but I didn't understand. All I understood was that I was safe, in his arms, and I collapsed, completely drained.

"It's good to know self defense…" then I fell asleep.

A/N: Well, was that interesting? I hope that kept you awake. I was in a mood for something interesting. PLEASE REVIEW! Please! I need some inspiration, and maybe some pointers.

What do you think will happen? ;)


	6. Ch 6 Discoveries

**Ch 6**

**A/N: All right, you people! I'll tell you what "some" of the story is going to be about. Remember my first story? Well, you didn't find out the plot, really, until the later chapters. **

**That's just my writing style for this little series. I'm planning on writing a third, and I might change the rating because of, well, language, and something that might happen! ;) No comment…**

**Remember that this is Suze's senior year! Anything could happen.**

**Here's a better summary:**

**Sequel to Relative Threat : After a rough passage through Shadowland, Suze and Jesse are back together, soaking up the last rays of sun before their senior year starts. Problem is things go terrible. Suze starts to wonder, now that Jesse's alive, will he still love her, or will some other girl take him away from her? Because of these speculations, Suze starts to not trust Jesse as much as she should have. Crissi's back, and is Paul really as bad as we think? Jesse becomes jealous of the new kid Matt, which Suze feels a strange lure for. Jesse might call off the engagement. Could everything that happened last summer be a lie? Things go even worse as Crissi continues threatening and stalking Suze, but she can't seem to stop anything as her relationship with Jesse spins out of control. Will they be able to live through it all together as Crissi's threats grow more and more menacing? Suze knows one thing and that is Crissi wants Suze…but what would she want about Suze? She must solve all this before it's too late.**

**Or is it already?**

**There's a hint!**

**Thanks for the reviews, they seriously mean a lot to me! I'll be, hopefully, updating every week or so, depending on inspiration, capish? (However you spell it!) **

**And if you don't know where the story's going :cough: just read, because you'll catch on. Why do you think Crissi's after Suze? Retaliation…or…_more?_**

**_By the way, because I wrote this before Twilight, the sisters' names will stay the same. If you haven't noticed, in Twilight, Meg Cabot lists the names of some sisters…like one was Mercedes and I can't remember the rest. Because I started this before Twilight, I'm leaving the names the same._**

One thing I knew for sure, Crissi was after my guts.

No, really. My guts.

Those were my first thoughts as I woke up to a bright morning. I opened my bleary eyes and was slightly stunned. I rubbed my hands over my face.

_Where was I?_

I pushed myself off of a really squishy mattress and sat up, rubbing my arms. For some reason, I wasn't wearing my pajamas. Instead, I was wearing some incredibly sexy nightgown that was pale white and gossamer. The neckline dipped precariously low and I was slightly pleased to see that my boobs weren't as small as I thought. Maybe that was because I was wearing…_a corset! _I felt sick. I looked down my shirt and saw that…_hmm_…I was wearing different underwear too. Slightly scared, I looked around.

_Funny…I sure as hell don't remember coming to this place and ever putting on this incredibly sexy nightgown…_

I studied the room. It was clean, with really fluffy white carpeting and Western furniture all over; the mahogany bed with four posts supporting a canopy that I was sitting beneath smelled like it was recently polished. Wood and polish…never thought the two mixed. The headboard had an intricate lasso pattern all around it and I fingered the etching. It was burned in. The dresser had a huge displayed collection of cologne/perfume (they look the same to me), and a weird, beaded necklace with a cross at the end hung directly above me on the wall. I thought it looked strangely Roman Catholic, a rosary, if that's what you call it, but I let that thought drift. Maybe this was a girl's room, because I saw a portrait of a beautiful woman across from me. It looked like…_Jesse's mom. _I leaned back, slightly spooked because everywhere I moved, her eyes watched me. I hated pictures like that. I mean, what was with Mona Lisa and that infernal smile or whatnot on her face? I distractedly slid my hands under the pillow and froze; I pulled out from under my pillow a huge ornate scalpel, with rubies and a gold handle. There was a thump and I looked at the window. Across the street was…_my house_…and a sudden motion caught my attention. My gaze fell and there, sitting on the window seat, was Spike.

Ah…so this was my elusive Jesse's room…

Or not.

For all I know, Spike just so happen might like all the de Silva's and is…Tia's personal pet or something. I studied one of the cologne/perfume labels. _Yeah…I **think** that's a girl brand…I'm really not into the whole "Spritz yourself with artificially putrid liquid that is an unnatural color and see how smelly you turn out…"_ I looked at the mahogany door that led to the hallway and saw that it was locked, and bolted.

Weird.

The door next to the open window was shut, and I saw thick steam coming out from under the door. Weird… I flung off my blankets and strolled over to the door and bent down, trying to see who was under there. Was this door connected to one of the other sister's rooms? I could thank her for her hospitality and maybe convince her I'm not as slutty as her family and the rest of the world thinks. Or-

I bent even lower, and was startled to see that you could SO see my boob-popping corset underneath the nightgown. Before I could adjust it, I heard footsteps, saw some pretty big feet, and only had enough time to fall backwards on my back as the door opened outward suddenly. My nightgown flapped, as well as my hair. I looked up, startled to see that this door only let to someone's private bathroom.

In the open doorway stood a very wet, a very HOTT towel-clad Jesse DeSilva. I gulped as I stared up at him. He didn't seem to notice a girl laying on the ground, but I sure noticed his six pack and his biceps, and how, oh God, and how lovely this view was down south, and, oh _man_-

Suddenly, he looked down and his eyes widened.

"Susannah! What are you doing out of bed!"

I blinked from my stupor. Such extreme fineness right before my eyes…!

Oh extremely wet Adonis, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways…I love thee to the depth and breadth and height my soul can…reach…when feeling out of…sight…for the ends of…for the ends of…of…

Oh whatever.

Were his lips still moving?

"Huh?"

"You should be resting!" I raised an eyebrow. _Resting? _"Querida, after such an exerting day yesterday, I thought you needed the rest."

"Well, I am lying on the ground…" in an incredibly sexy nightgown…shouldn't he notice my sex appeal! I frowned slightly and crossed my arms.

He shook his head. "I thought we discussed--- No, wait, excuse me-I forgot; you fell asleep."

I looked at him. "Did you get me this…" incredibly sexy "…nightgown?"

He looked abashed. "It's my younger sister, Carmen's, but I thought you'd look nice in it because you two are about the same size, so I figured that you might want to change clothes because you had blood all over your body." I gave him another look. "Don't worry; I had my sisters bathe you and dress you but I chose the garment and she thought you'd appreciate the 'panties' but I really don't think it was necessary but-"

I was mortified. "Your family saw me…_naked_?"

"Well, only three of my sisters…and mother, but Tia said for my reference, that you had a lovely-" Here he stopped and dropped his gaze to the floor.

I stood up. "Jesse…?"

"Si, querida?"

"I love everything. Especially you. Thank you." Then I stood on my tippy-toes and kissed him.

I only expected it to be a kiss. Hell, Jesse did too, from his thoughts, but I mean, come on…two teenagers in love…a locked room…

I felt him pull back a bit, startled, but I held the back of his head with my hands and held him close. His hair was still damp, warm, and thick. Then he started taking control of the kiss. He tilted my head more leisurely and gently licked my lips. My mouth automatically opened and he explored my mouth, circling my tongue with his as he looped around it, taking his time. He boosted me up and I wrapped my legs around his waist as he buried his mouth in the hollow of my neck. His fingers locked underneath my derriere, and I felt safe and secure as he held me in that position. (A/N: Think "Just Married") His mouth traveled across my face and I felt his towel start to slide beneath me and suddenly, he backed up and we fell backwards. We both landed on top of his bed. I sat on top of his waist, watching his chest rise and fall. My gaze traveled to his crooked smile as he stared into my eyes. I ran my fingers lightly over his chest, feeling the light fuzz, and felt his body go taut. I grinned and lazily stretched out on top of him, content and exhilarated.

"Jesse?"

His voice came out hoarse. "Yes, querida?" We knew what was coming. Suddenly, I felt something hard move underneath me, but I didn't comment.

"Do you-"

"Are you sure, querida? I don't want to dishonor you. Why do it now when we have the rest of our lives? Then again…" he breathed deeply, "it tempted me." He rolled on top of me and looked down at me. "Do you, Susannah? Do you want to-"

"Jesse, I do."

He lowered his lips to mine and we kissed. I felt his hand in my hair and I blindly groped around for his towel. I felt it and gave it a gentle tug.

It didn't come loose.

"JESSE! SUZIE! BREAKFAST IS SERVED!" the last word "served" was held out for three seconds.

We both groaned and after a long, lingering look, Jesse rolled off me. At the same time, we both murmured irritably, "**_Tia_**…"

I couldn't help but feel bitter towards Tia. I mean, here was our moment of intimacy, Jesse was about to be naked, I was about to see his…yeah, and this pint-sized six year old happens to come along, ruin it, and announce its breakfast time. As we both trudged down the stairs arm in arm, I saw Tia at the bottom, hollering for Carmen to finish straightening her already pin straight hair and afterwards, not to bother checking for split ends, Valencia to hurry up and stop having secret fantasies and the twins…well, Tia didn't even comment.

Her eyes locked on mine. Damn. "SUZIE!" She went up to me and hugged me tightly. I felt my insides melt like marshmallow. I patted her head and suddenly, the grudge was gone.

For now.

"Tia! Good morning." I smiled, and felt her French braided hair. This morning, as her usual chipper self, she was wearing a bright yellow summer dress with white polka dots and white ribbons and lace all around. Tied in her French braid were ribbons put in an elaborate way.

She beamed. "Valencia did it…when she wasn't busy daydreaming. It's beautiful, no?" she grabbed my hand, "come to the dining room! Breakfast is served! Mammy is waiting for us all! I woke up at 5:30 today!" I thought to myself that if she kept this up, she'd never make it to high school awake, "She has made a special breakfast just for you, because she HARDLY makes a banquet in the morning. Mmmm…delicious hand squeezed orange juice, pancakes…" Tia continued listing all the things her Mommy made and I felt my back ach because of her holding onto my hand at such a low level, I was practically keeling over she was so short. I was bent over and following her through the gigantic mansion that Jesse called "his house". The Dining Room was on the other side of the home, so when we got there, it was relief to have Tia let go of my hand and pull up a chair. It was so cute; she was so short looking when she was pulling the chair out from under the table. I gladly took it. Rosa, (she made me call her that) handed me some pulpy orange juice. I liked Jesse's mom. She was very beautiful and regal looking even though she had only lipstick. Naturals. I knew that her daughters would turn out just like her. Today she was wearing her pearls and had her hair tied up in a bun at the nap of her neck. Her dress was a gray suit because she still probably had to work.

Jesse sat next to me. Five minutes later, down came Carmen, lip gloss in hand, eye shadow compact opened, and all dressed up in a cute salsa dress. Her eyes scanned the room, then stopped at me. She smiled and I thought, _"You wouldn't get along with Kelly…too much competition for her…" _She obviously was fond of me, or the incredibly sexy nightgown, I wasn't sure.

"You like?" she swirled around for me, "I got it for $48.64, a very cheap price. It's for a Spanish festival held in three days. I was just trying on for fit. We are, after all, Spanish, not Latin American or Mexican."

…was there a difference?

As soon as the delicious food was served, Valencia came running in, her straight hair flying behind her. She was wearing old sweats and a t-shirt. Her mom looked at her and said, "Happy belated birthday!" Valencia smiled vaguely but instantly panicked.

"Mama! I have a modeling session in half an hour for Hollister! My agent just called, you remember, Marija Gomez. The modeling manager Maryann Ross faxed had faxed her, too. It's urgent. You will be able to take me, right?" In her hand, I noticed her holding some weird package. She noticed me eyeing it and she quickly hid it behind her. I shrugged to myself and continued eating, not bothering to read her mind, though I figured it was some birthday present from an admirer.

Valencia and her mother started talking in Spanish to each other, and I averted my gaze from everyone. Jesse noticed, and brushed my hand with his. I quickly looked up and saw him smile at me. I grinned back, and we both finished eating.

Suddenly, Rosa gestured towards the present. Valencia blushed, and said something about "su obsequio de hermano". (It's her brother's gift)

Carmen rolled her eyes as she pointlessly put on lip gloss and drank her orange juice. "Mama¡El es obviamente en amor con Valencia!" (He's obviously in love with Valencia!) Valencia blushed and sent a glance towards me. I smiled awkwardly and nodded. What the hell were they saying?

Carmen had a sudden look of glee on her face, and astonishment. "¡Ah mi Dios, usted lo adora¡Usted adora a hermano de Susannah David¡No lo niegue!" (Oh my God! You do like him! You like Susannah's brother David! Don't deny it!)

Mrs. DeSilva snapped back, "¡Carmen¡Cómo atrévasele dice que a su hermana¡Eso no puede ser verdad¡Discúlpese!" (Carmen! How dare you say that to your sister! That may not be true! Apologize!)

Tia piped up in quite fluent Spanish, "No no. no. ..it quizás sea verdad. ..I vio hablar de Valencia a David en privado." (No no...it might be true...I saw Valencia talking to David in private.)

Valencia turned towards her youngest sister and groaned. "¡No usted también!" (Not you too!) Valencia animatedly argued, "¡Era APENAS una conversación¡Ustedes me hacen tarde para mi modelando la sesión!" (It was JUST a conversation! You're ALL making me late for my modeling session!") Valencia grabbed a toaster strudel and stuffed her mouth with it, not caring about how all that sugar would go to her hips.

Valencia stopped yelling in Spanish. "Carmen, you're the WORST example for Tia! I'm LEAVING! Good bye, I have better things to do than waste my time arguing with false accusations! Adios, arrivederci , sayonara, hasta luega, whatever language you ignorant people speak, good day!" Valencia started for the door.

Valencia had one foot on the steps when Mrs. deSilva sighed. "Valencia, come eat something nutritional. That won't be good for your next session." Valencia looked at the vile bit of vermin/food in her hand, visibly shuddered and chucked it in the wastebin. I liked their mother; she made them all shut up. Another trait I admired. "Finish eating, Valencia, and I'll take you there later."

"You are all making false assumptions." She declared finally. Trying not to glower, she put a sunny smile on and looked at me. "Sorry about all that, I hardly ever argue," she smiled sheepishly. "They were just-" she stopped and gestured around, "-assuming things and being narrow-minded. You would understand, right? You know. I suppose brothers are like this too."

I smiled. "Yeah, I know." She smiled back and I couldn't help but think "And I know Valencia's my new pal."

Suddenly, Rosa looked at Jesse. "Jesse, did you finish your school shopping?"

Jesse shook his head. "No…I haven't even started yet."

Rosa looked at me. "Suze, do you mind taking everyone school shopping? I'm not familiar with the area yet," she smiled demurely. "I'm sure you know Carmel better than I do."

"Yeah, I know the area pretty well. I could take them."

"Good." She reached into a drawer, pulled out two sets of car keys, and tossed one to Jesse. "I'm going to be taking Valencia to her modeling session now before another argument confronts her." She paused and her eyes went from Carmen to Valencia. She tilted her head at the keys Jesse had just caught with one hand. "You're driving, but listen to your lady!" she looked at me. "Men HARDLY listen to women when it involves directions, remember that, chica. They won't even ask for directions." She winked. "Perhaps you'll be able to harness Jesse, no? Have a good day, children!"

I turned slightly crimson. Mrs. De Silva left with Valencia, making the room feel empty. Carmen called after her, "So what am I, air? Don't say goodbye to your eldest daughter!" She shook her head and looked at me. "By the way, cute nightgown; love the selection. By the way, I'm going through PMS so just like, ignore me. You know what happens."

I nodded. "Right. I'll remember that."

Mrs. deSilva came back. "On second thought, Suze, could you take all of them? I have to get to the office. I didn't realize how late it was!"

"Sure…but I'm not driving, Jesse is. We ought to ask him."

Mrs. deSilva looked at Jesse and he nodded. "Fine by me, as long as you pay for the gas."

We backed out of the driveway and Jesse craned his neck to look behind us. No cars. He put us in Drive and we drove smoothly down our street. I told him to turn left. Carmen yawned and pulled out a nail buffer and started buffing her nails. She admired the shine and continued. Valencia was staring out her window at my house, and the twins were bickering over whose bracelet was whose. Tia was currently, well…

Sitting on my lap.

Yeah, I know, shouldn't there be an empty seat or something? There was…but it was currently occupied by everyone's purses.

"Jesse! Let's go to the stables." She started to braid a clump of my hair. I tugged my hair away and leaned against the seat.

I frowned. "Stables?"

"Oh," he waved his hand impatiently, "we bought our own stables when we moved here, but that's not important."

"You have your own _stables?_ How rich are you people!"

"Quite," Carmen said. I covered Tia's ears.

"You're being a bad role model, Carmen. These are Tia's shaping years. That's not the point at all. Money. Psh. Happiness. My parents are big horse lovers, and they adore horses. They found a huge plot of land and they bought horses and-well, you understand. It's a very nice place, very quiet, natural, like our old home-" Here Jesse smiled wryly at me as Valencia continued talking, "-and-"

"ROMANTIC! ROMANTIC! THAT'S WHAT PAPA AND MAMA SAID!" Tia jerked away from me.

"Tia, what's with you and romance? Get a life and stop bugging us old people."

"Carmen, be nice to Tia."

"I can treat anyone as I want, Valencia. I just so happened to be older than you-"

"By a mere year! You're only sixteen…I'm fifteen. Jesse and Suze are seventeen!"

"-and I'm sorry, but Valencia, at your 'young' and naïve age, you shouldn't burden yourself with love or-" here she laughed, "or fraternize with our dear beloved brother's girlfriend's brother. That's like, incest."

I whirled around. NO…not her too? Not to…_Brad! _"**What**!"

Valencia paled slightly and retort angrily, "Be quiet, Carmen, and shut up about things you don't know. It's obvious you're not to be trusted."

"I know far more than you would ever know and besides, I can keep a secret but this is just too… what's the word…"

"Complicated for your brain. You don't know ANYTHING that's going on so just SHUT UP!"

Suddenly the twins spoke up. "You both are so retarded for arguing about the stupidest things. Just shut up."

Jesse sensed danger in the backseats of the minivan. "Tia, you have to go school shopping first before we head to the stables. Aren't you excited to learn?"

Carmen scoffed at Jesse. "Maybe for creeps like you." She looked at me. "Sorry, remember, PMS? Whenever I PMS-"

"Which is about every other day…that's becoming a very lame excuse…"

Carmen glared, "Whenever I PMS, I get all pissy and then I start to argue with Valencia. Normally, Valencia is the NICEST person in the world but…"

Tia looked out the window and her whole disposition changed. She glowered, "Who gives a fuck about school?"

I gasped and looked down. "_TIA! _Where'd you hear_ that _word?"

She just looked at me weirdly. "From you!"

I gaped. "Me!"

"Si! It was in the middle of last night. You were teaching me vocabulary; you were wearing all black, too, and you were _really_ shiny. Plus you had a, what do you call it, a tattoo on her chest."

My mouth felt dry. Damn…Crissi was talking to Tia!

Jesse told her something, but I couldn't hear any of it. I couldn't help but think "_Shitshitshitshitshit__… Tia's conversing with Crissi! Tia can see dead people!"_

I grabbed Tia by the wrist. "Don't listen to me at night, do you hear me? Don't you Ever. Ever. Listen. To. Me at Night unless-"

She smiled. "Unless you say the secret password!"

Hey…not bad of an idea.

"What's the password going to be?" I asked.

She conspiringly looked around, then whispered in my ear, "Hex. You know, Hex. What you and Jesse were going to do before breakfast. And I promise I won't think of the word when I talk to you. That way, you won't know if you can read minds!"

Paul's POV

God, I hate Carmel. I hated my "family" here…heck, he was in the hospital right now, so I was home alone. I stepped into my house and slammed shut the home. "Back from vacation. Supposedly," I said aloud to the house…if it even wanted to know. Actually, what I had been trying to do was find Crissi. No, I wasn't after her…I was trying to kill her. Why? Mainly, because she tried to kill Suze. I would NEVER let that happen. But then again, I was way over Suze, and plus, just to make her feel better, I planned on telling her she was still a virgin, face to face, not in her dreams. Hell, she must hate me. I never raped her, it was just an-

Suddenly, there was an odd, creaking noise.

_Funny…couldn't be the door; it doesn't squeak, but then again…what else, or who else is behind me…?_

"Hey Paul…" a low, husky voice. I whirled around and was face to face with a blonde girl with heavy eyes. She was wearing a weird red vest thing and on her nametag, it said "Jamie". Dude, talk about freakish.

"What are you doing inside my house!"

Suddenly she looked up and oh God…_green eyes._

I reached down and doing the sanest thing to reveal a secret only I knew; if a soul is transferred, two of the most obvious physical traits are revealed on the transferred body; their eyes and something else. I grabbed the lapels of her vest and her shirt collar and pulled down, revealing one of the traits I knew she'd have other than eyes; a lily tattoo on her upper right breast.

"YOU!"

_Crissi_.

"What the hell do you want, now!"

"Yeah, its me, I had to kill someone for a body." She laughed and said, "I shouldn't have ever fucked with you but I need a simple favor…"

After she told me, I frowned. "Never!"

"Fine by me…" and five seconds later, I didn't even know it was coming…such excruciating pain…I was screaming bloody murder.

"Now will you?" she whispered seductively and evilly to my ear. I shut my eyes and ignored her perfectly full lips as they mouthed the words. God no…GODAMNIT!

"Yes."

"Good boy."

"What the hell are you trying to do to Suze, anyway?"

"You'll see…sooner or later."

She undid whatever she tied me up with and vanished, leaving me terrified in my own fucking house.

I seriously should return to Seattle.

Suze's POV

We dropped Valencia off and went to the nearest supply store. I bought all the necessary items, then went to checkout. A girl with heavy, bloodhound eyes looked blearily up at me. A glance at her nametag told me her name was Jamie. At first, she looked sad, but then she spoke.

Her voice sounded so monotone as she said, "Good afternoon might I recommend that if you use your credit card you can get a forty percent discount off the already clearance prices or would you just rather purchase you items now?" She said that all in one breath. I didn't realize that I was also holding my breath. I exhaled.

"Oh no, I don't have a credit card."

She gave me the weirdest look. "Fine I'll ring you up so just put your stuff here and I'll ring you up and here's the discount offer brochure in case you were interested and your total comes up to sixty-five seventy-two and go ahead and swipe your card whoops I forgot you didn't have a credit card just pay up." I quickly grabbed my bag. "but-" Suddenly her eyes lit up and they were…_green._ I backed away but she grabbed my neck.

"Hey Suzie, glad you could make it. Didn't know you were such an earnest scholar."

I gasped. "How did you know my name? And let go of me!"

She cackled. "Ooh, Suzie, you're so predictable. By the way, thanks to you, I had to kill just for this body! She's disgusting, isn't she? I hate her heavy bloodhound bitch eyes, hate her blonde hair, hate her fuzzy body, hate how she has no piercings! I wish I got to kill my requested body, but I'll need her still. So I'm stuck with this gorilla. Well, maybe not for long." I saw a weird light flow out of Jamie's mouth.

Suddenly, "Jamie" pitched forward and hit the cash register, limp with blood gushing out of her mouth. Crissi, the ghost, laughed as she prodded "Jamie's" back. "Man, she was so gullible. Thought I was some freakin' angel or something. Well, I could have let her live, but I 'accidentally' killed her **and **her body. Oh well! Tootles, Suzie, and be glad I won't do that to you."

I looked at her face. "What?"

She looked angry with herself. "Nevermind!" and she vanished. There was a moment when I just stared at Jamie. I didn't think she would be dead, but then I noticed that her jaw was cracked at an odd angle, her eyes were still open, open and unblinking, and her skin was such a sallow color.

I ran off away from the body. The cashier was dead.

And Crissi was still after me.

I didn't know what she wanted

But I was going to find out.

I needed answers, and the only way I'd get them is through him.

I ran up the small steps and stepped onto the front porch, my flip flops slapping the cementing. I stopped at his door and caught my breath, breathed in deeply and placed a hand on my rapidly beating heart. I leaned one elbow against his door and pressed my ear to it; a voice.

Still leaning, I banged on his door.

"PAUL! PAUL WHATEVER-YOUR-MIDDLE-NAME-IS SLATER, YOU GET THE FUCK OUT OF YOUR HOUSE THIS **INSTANT!** PAUL! PAUL, I'M NOT JOKING, PAUL! PAUL, GET OUT NOW, I KNOW YOU'RE IN THERE, YOU CAR'S IN THE DRIVEWAY! I'M GIVING YOU FIVE SECONDS BEFORE I BREAK DOWN THIS METAL LOOKING DOOR AND PULVERIZE YOUR TIGHT LITTLE-"

The door suddenly opened and I fell straight inside, tripping over something, slipped on something sticky, and landed on my wrists. The door slammed shut right behind me and suddenly I was in complete darkness.

"You tripped over me!"

"What the hell-"

Paul Slater, in his blonde glory, knelt beside me and clamped a hand over my mouth to shush me. "Shhh…Crissi might hear us."

"How'd you know I was here about-"

"SHHHHH!" He released his grip and looked me over. "Thank God she didn't hurt us."

"What's going on? What-"

He jumped and not standing up, reached as far as he could and bolted the door, muttering something.

"Paul? _What's wrong with you! Stand up!"_

"Don't turn on the lights!"

I ignored him and flicked on the switch and gasped.

Paul was bleeding. All over. His face was bruised and his white shirt was all bloody and ripped in various places. Somebody stabbed him! Around his wrists were bounds still tied, but were more so cuffs. He looked forlornly up at me as he kneeled on the ground. My eyes traveled over all the damage. Nothing major, but there was a huge cut in his jeans. Blood was everywhere, and a glance under my flip flops told me that I had slipped on Paul's blood **and** tripped over his face.

He tried a smile, but his lower lip was split. He winced as his broken lip bleed. "It's not as bad as it looks." He pressed a finger to the cut. "See? I'm human; I bleed. I have a heart. It's a good thing." He started to laugh.

"_What did Crissi **do** to you!"_

He waved his hand aside, his eyes blazing. "No matter. What the hell is up with you? Is Crissi stalking you and…" he paused, his eyes pained, "…Jesse?"

I nodded. "I need your help. Crissi's up to something."

He also nodded. "I realized. She said something about needing a clipping I had…" his eyes widened. "Oh my freakin' God! SUZE! We have to get to my room! Pull me up!"

I ran up to him, kicked off my shoes and tried, but it was kind of hard, me being a hundred something and him like, seventy pounds more than me…

We managed to both stand upright, him using me as a crutch, and we hobbled up the stairs.

Five minutes later, we made it to the top of the stairs. "What's," I puffed, "Going." Puff. "On?" Puff.

We stopped at his bedroom door. He leaned against it. "Thanks." Paul wiped his brow. "I don't know, but I have a hunch."

Jesse's POV

"SUSANNAH!"

"Hector, where'd she go?"

"SUSANNAH!"

"HECTOR!"

"DON'T CALL ME HECTOR. It's Jesse. I'm not some Trojan prince."

"Yeesh."

I stopped yelling and raced to the cashier by the exit. If she saw Susannah…of course, if Susannah left, she would have to…

Unless…she wasn't on duty…

"Ma'am! Sir! Anyone?" I stopped at the front of the line. Odd…

Instinct told me to smell, so I did and what I smelled was a putrid odor.

Carmen stopped running and stopped beside me. "Any luck?" she asked desperately.

I shook my head. "Carmen, stand back." I started to lean over the barrier.

Carmen crossed her arms. "What's going on, Jesse?"

I shook my head. "I don't know, but I have a hunch."

Suze's POV

"Sorry, I locked my door."

I raised an eyebrow and sighed. Holding my arms up, I kicked the door down.

We both stared.

Jesse's POV

I leaned over the barrier again.

_En el nombre de Dios! _

"CARMEN, GET THE MANAGER!"

"Must I?"

"CARMEN, do as I say."

She stood next to me and peered over. "I don't see any---**_Oh my GOD!_**" She started to scream. Everyone in the store ran towards us. I grabbed her, and lifted her the other way, not daring to believe my eyes either.

_Murder._

Crissi.

I shielded my sister with my body and whispered as soothingly as I could. "Hush! La calma, la hermana, no chilla. Jesse aquí le deberá proteger. Usted es seguro. Nadie la dolerá." (Be calm, sister, don't scream. Jesse is here to protect you. You are safe, no one will hurt you.)

"Jesse…I'm scared."

Suze's POV

I rushed back to Office Depot screaming my lungs out. "JESSE! JESSE!"

He hurried out of the building, which was now surrounded by police cars, camera people, and an ambulance.

"Susannah! Are you all right?" He ran to my side and clutched my hands. He looked into my eyes and quickly embraced me.

"Why did you go to Paul?" he whispered.

I looked up. "Jesse…Paul's hurt. Crissi hurt him, but that isn't a problem." He opened his mouth to speak but I silenced him. "I know now."

"What?"

"I know what Crissi wants."

"What, querida?"

I took a breath to calm my nerves. "She wants to take over my body."

He furrowed his eyebrows. "What?"

"I realize now, and Paul helped me out…" Jesse's eyes narrowed but I continued, "She wants me. My body. Not my soul. She wants to swap bodies with me."

"I don't understand, Susannah-"

"She wants to live."

"Susannah…"

"She wants me dead."

"Susannah…what…?"

"She wants to kill me."

He stopped. Everything stopped.

"What?"

"You heard me. Crissi wants to kill me."


	7. Ch 7 School and Jesse

Ch 7

A/N: OMG! I just checked my email and I saw…4 _reviews!_

Omgomgomgomg. Thank you! tears! I LOVE YOU ALL! Cookie points for you all. Thanks for reviewing! That really means a lot to me.

* * *

I had witnessed a murder right in front of my nose and I knew the killer. Only, the reporters and my mom sure didn't know who it was. She asked me. My mom, I mean. Her being a reporter and all. Heck, she's interviewed Arafat before. So she asked me over the phone. They were in the car, on the drive back to Carmel. I couldn't tell her anything. I mean, I'd like to, but what could I say? To her and the eighty-seven reporters and police officers that bombarded me with questions, I mean, they wanted answers. Answers I couldn't give. So I just told them to back off. In nicer terms, of course. Despite my best efforts at remaining anonymous, I was going to be on the news.

I felt so dazed. Everything was happening so fast! We finally knew what Crissi wanted. Crissi wanted me, my body. She wanted to swap bodies.

And kill me in the process. But hey; only one soul allowed. And that was going to be me. _I_ was going to be the one keeping my bod. And no way was some sick, freak going to get it.

See, those were my thoughts, but it didn't help that Jesse was pacing around his room mumbling incoherently to himself. I tried to tune him out, really, I did, but it was so hard, especially when he would deliberately stop and just stare at my face in anguish, and seconds later continue that irritating pacing and start muttering in Spanish.

Really. He had to stop that. The Spanish, I mean. And the pacing, too, if he can.

I was about to tell him to stop moving around so much and stop with the language when he abruptly swung around and stared at me with this uncharacteristic wild look in his eyes.

"No…" More Spanish. " Mi querida! No mi amor! No…_No_…**No!**"

The last no was a yell that shook me out of my stupor. I mean, I had been in a comatose state ever since Jesse took me to his house and we both locked ourselves up in Jesse's room. I jumped and looked up, stunned to see that…_that_- _expression_ on his face. "You cannot be hunted! This isn't right. You cannot leave me. Not like this, with that…fiend out there."

He grabbed my arm and started to stroke it, the light dusting of hair on my arms tingling. I stared at his face, trying to concentrate on what he was saying and not do anything crazy. You know, like in Cabin Fever, when that one girl was like, "Yeah, and if you were on a plane and knew you were gonna die, you just wanna screw everyone." Do something crazy. And that later led to…events. Well, I wasn't going to do that. No sir. I have my priorities. Besides; I wasn't going to die. At least, I'd try not to.

"Not now¿Por qué usted¡no... no... por favor, no¡Dios¿Por qué? Mi querida! Please don't leave me, not when we have so much to live for." (Why you? no... no... please, no! God! Why? )

I guess he was taking it harder than I was. I mean, I was trying to think of a plan to save my skin and all…but Jesse obviously thought I was a toddler or something; not able to take care of myself.

Using his left hand, he held up my face and rubbed a slightly rough thumb across my cheeks, his fingers supporting my face. I had shut my eyes and savored the feel of him holding me (this really was becoming a rare occasion) when his fingers ran across my relaxed lips, sending jolts down my sickeningly sensitive spine. The hairs at the base of my neck tingled with anticipation but nothing else happened, except he uttered a few more Spanish words. I didn't get it. I never would. With his free hand, he reached for my own and he grasped it tightly. My eyes sprang open and I stared at his face. Tears were coursing down his cheeks, glistening in the bright afternoon lighting. He was looking down. My eyes traveled down to our entwined hands and we both clearly saw our promise rings. I had completely forgotten about them. Wearing my own was like instinct…I just never treasured it. I couldn't help it.

I felt a tear prick at the corners of my eyes. I tried blinking it away, but it probably looked like I had a tic or something.

Jesse instantly panicked and I remember this one thing CeeCee told me: Men are like mascara; they'll run at the first sign of emotion. I had protested that if you bought waterproof, you could prevent tears, but CeeCee had countered that although the waterproof kinds would be "waterproof", they still would smeared.

But Jesse was always different. He wasn't like any other guy I knew, because, well, I loved him. And he loved me. Instead of leaving, or running for the Kleenex, he smiled cheekily and lowered his mouth towards mine. I got a whiff of that distinct clean smell of his and I ran my hands through his thick hair as our lips touched. With every breath, he sent jolts through my body.

"Promise me you won't do anything foolhardy, querida."

In the middle of kissing him, I replied, "Like exorcising Crissi? No worries, Jesse, we'll get Father Dom involved; he'll know what to do and how to save me." Right? I've never had a ghost try to kill me before. It just wasn't in my mediating handbook. (Note the pun) I mean, sure, they would break my bones, threaten me, chuck founding father heads at me, crush me under breezeways, throw me off roofs, and try to pulverize me, but no ghost actually on the face of this earth was sent down from limbo for the sole purpose of _killing _me.

He murmured against my lips, "Why have a priest protect you when you have me?

"I promise I'll save you."

And you know what? Deep down, I knew he would. Despite anything, he would.

* * *

Hours later, I plopped down on Jesse's living room leather love seat, turned on the TV and flipped through channels, hoping to catch a good show at seven.

MTV…Discovery Channel…Animal Planet…

Suddenly, I stopped when I saw the picture on the screen.

_"-think school shopping is nothing may be surprised; At Office Depot earlier today, at approximately one thirty-seven, Pacific Time, a seventeen year old senior attending Carmel High School died today. Jamie Lafeyre was working at her afternoon shift today when she strangely died. There were no gun, knife wounds, or anything else that would have marred or fatally harm her and cause the death, nor any sign of overdoses, stroke, heart attack, or aneurism that would cause such an instant death. But the autopsy proved heavy damage on her skull as her cranium was cracked open, the impact shattering the frontal bone and parietal bone, also crushing her mandible. "I can't believe this has happened. Jamie would never have been so careless as to suddenly fall. It's just not like her,"_ The camera went to her mother. Then back to the anchorman. "_Now, on to our live reporter with the latest."_Here, the camera went live to a reporter stationed at the Office Depot, near register twelve. My Mom. Guess she was home. Maybe the station called her to do this report._ "Thanks, Harvey. As we interviewed the police, they said that a young woman was reported to be at the scene. Susannah," _here, my Mom gave a wry smile, "_Simon was allegedly said to have witnessed the murder, as shown on the store cameras positioned near the registers, positioned specifically to see shoplifters." _There was suddenly the black and white store camera view, and you could clearly see me being grabbed on the neck by Jamie, or, Crissi. You couldn't hear what we were saying, but suddenly, out of Jamie's mouth came Crissi (Or a weird orb as normal people would see), and Jamie pitched forward and conked her forehead on the open cash register. The orb was hovering over me. _"She, however, claims she has the 'right to remain silent, you freakin' stalkers.' But as you saw, on the camera, there was something strange coming out of Ms. Lefeyre's mouth after she assaulted Simon. Further questioning will be delayed, however, until next week Wednesday. As you can see behind me, this is where the fatal 'accident' occurred. Was this a murder? Or simply just an accident?" _Mom looked strangely happy; I guess it isn't often people suddenly drop down dead. Great, mom, great. "_Researchers have no idea why this healthy seventeen year old died, but they claim that they'll get to the bottom of this soon. Back to you, Harvey." _Suddenly, Harvey came back on._ "Thanks for that. And showing here, is the witness."_

Suddenly, on screen, there was me, Jesse, and his whole motley crew. Microphones were shoved at our retreating backs as we ran to the parking lot, the camera shaking slightly. Then it focused on my cute cami top. I didn't know it looked like that from the back…maybe I should have ironed it.

_"Miss Simon! What did you see?"_

A tight lipped me was rushing away from the camera. All these reporters were following us.

"_Susannah!"_

_"SUSANNAH!"_

_"Miss Simon!"_

_"Suze!"_

_"HOW THE HELL DO YOU KNOW MY NAME? LEAVE ME ALONE!"_ the on-camera Suze screamed. I raised my, err, finger, and ran off to the de Silva van. Why is it, that on MTV shows and all that crap, they blur out the license plate? Well, I guess they forgot because you could clearly see "JA1 47W9 California" on it.

"_…thanks for tuning in to Action Seven News. Now on to sports with Morris Bentley-"_

Disgusted, I shut off the TV. Jesse was leaning against the doorframe watching me with interest. He nudged his head towards the blank screen.

"See why I can live without television?"

I just glared at him. "You could have at least personalized your license plate."

He shrugged. "It isn't mine. It's my mother's."

Then he sat down next to me, wrapping his arm around my waist.

"So…liking your minutes of fame?" he teased.

"Not as much as I'm liking this," I replied and started kissing him. Jesse's hands were cupping my face and I leaned against the sofa, wrapping my legs around his waist.

What's the point of a loveseat when you can just sit on Jesse's lap? I thought as Jesse's hand slid into my hair.

I started to finger his shirt buttons.

He started to pull my shirt up.

Then he gave it a tug.

Then along came Tia.

* * *

The next morning, I gathered my pens and pencils, spirals and such, jogged across the street, avoided Tia, grabbed Jesse's arm and we rushed to the garage. It was too early for school to be starting, but we had to get something straight with Father D. We needed to tell him, if he didn't see the news. _He_ would be able to see Crissi and know what was going on, no problem.

I sat down next to Jesse in a completely different car than the one he drove when we went to the beach. He was driving a Corvette that time.

Today, it was a Lamborghini. A freakin' black _Lamborghini._With _spinners._

Seriously, if he's _that_ rich, he should be living on Seventeen Mile Drive.

Well, good for me; it matched my outfit. The car, I mean, not the street.

And this license plate, I was pleased to see, was personalized. 2HOT4U. Harhar…

I buckled my seatbelt. Jesse looked over at me and smiled. "Nervous about school?"

"Hardly," I responded airily. How could I be when I was in a sleek sports car with tinted windows, the love of my life chauffeuring, had spent three hours working on my hair, putting my hair up in a tortoise shell clip and curling the strands I left out, had my feet strapped firmly in four inch black Charles Jourdan open toe heels, was clad in a cute black halter top, wearing my special Miu Miu skirt that Gina got for me back in Brooklyn, and to top it off, a black Gucci purse and my Chanel shades.

Oh, and my personally decorated TI-84 graphing calculator.

Hell yeah, I was ready to kick butt. Preferably, Sister Ernestine's huge one, but hey – anyone's would do. How could _I _be nervous when I looked this good?

Just kidding.

"Are _you_ nervous?" I asked. Jesse looked over at me and stopped backing out of the driveway. He put us in park. I watched the stick thing (see? I don't know _anything_ about a car) with envy.

Jesse drove like a natural. I swear. _I_ didn't even have a license. How did Jesse get one? I already asked him twice, but he didn't bother responding.

Fine. Be that way.

I had a feeling it had something to do with how the "church has ways".

He looked me in the eye. "Susannah, I have not been to school in, qué, a century and a half, but I love learning… Meeting new people and fitting in is my biggest concern right now…showing signs of my previous life wouldn't bode well, now would it?"

I fiddled with the radio, stopping on a song I liked. "Yeah, well, in this car, you do." When he raised the eyebrow with the scar subtly, I added, "Fit in, I mean."

"Susannah, are you trying to make me feel better? And what is a car-"

I was thinking of what I was going to say. "Not quite…"

I studied what Jesse was wearing; yeah. He'd fit in. Quite nicely. Decked out in PacSun and Billabong, he was the picture perfect Knight in Faded Abercrombie. That scar in his eyebrow gave him that striking look, and beneath his shirt, you could so tell he had a defined pack. That crisp looking hair, which is as crisp as it looks, and his olive complexion gives him that perfect tan…in a way. I mean, he's tan year round. His longer-than-my eyelashes…big, dark soulful doors to his soul…and those biceps? Yeah, a work of art. I'm sure Michaelangelo wouldn't mind Jesse posing sans apparel for him…heck, I'd want him posing naked for _me._ I was sure any straight girl would love to sink her claws into Jesse's lovely-

"The mission is which way?"

I pointed to the red dome in the distance. He muttered an 'ah, I can't believe this…thing runs on gas. Whatever happened to coal and trains?' and drove smoothly down our street. My eyes went back to staring at Jesse's body. I felt so special. I mean, Knight in Faded Abercrombie driving his noble steed-err, car, and whisking me away to his…okay, maybe not palace, but school. The school. I could so see myself at the prom with Jesse.

I think I must have blanked out, because suddenly, the music was off. The key was still in ignition, however, with Jesse's hand clutching it as though to pull it out.

"Aren't you going to get out? We're here."

I blinked into focus. Jesse was staring at me with an expression one could only hope was love. It was more like staring at a new species of clown, but hey; beggars can't be choosers.

I stared at Jesse as he pulled his key out of the ignition and the keys jingled as he held them, shaking them in an even rhythm. He was obviously nervous. He kept glancing out the window and nervously checked his rearview mirror. Just once. But once was all he needed. I thought he'd do more than fine, actually so I reached for his left hand (the one with the promise ring on it) and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"Susannah, I'm not nervous. I'm just worried about opening the doors."

"Why?" I asked and looked around, and quickly realized that maybe we should have come earlier. Our arrival in the Lamborghini had attracted a lot of people.

We were going to hit them in the face if we opened the doors…them being wings. The doors, not the students. So _that _was why he was nervous? He was looking out for the other peoples' welfare!

There was a whole flock of students surrounding our car, touching it, even. Most of the onlookers were ogling the car, but the minority group was trying to see who was in it.

Fat chance. I laughed silently. It's called _tinted windows._

"Welcome to Hell," Not Hell, Michigan, but as in hell, the school.

Jesse looked around.

"Why are they so close to the street?" he asked, ignoring the hell pun. He looked confused. I couldn't blame him. I sighed.

"They love your car." I mean, come on, it's a _Lamborghini_. It's like, imported from Italian. I mean, everyone around here drives Porsches, and corvettes, and mustangs and Mercedes, and your basic rich-ville material, but a sports car like a Lamborghini…

Now that was rare.

His eyebrows furrowed. "My what? Cart? As in, mule cart?"

Honestly. Half the time he didn't even understand me. What _did_ he call it, then? "Your. Vehicle. Automobile. Lamborghini." How else could I describe it? "The thing we're sitting in."

Comprehension dawned. "Ah…but what is so interesting about a…" he swallowed ,"_car?_"

I sighed again. Really, he wouldn't ever understand. "Just unlock the door, please."

So he did. But I forgot which way his doors opened. For a second. There was an unlocking noise on the driver's side, then Jesse's door swung upward, almost hitting the people nearest them. Jesse muttered an apology and he walked around the car. With the click of his clicker, his door shut.

I was alone in his car. I waited for him to open the door.

"JESSE! What are you doing, leaving me?" I heaved against my door. Nada. "Open!" How the hell did you unlock these doors? Suddenly, there was a click and my door opened, revealing an amused looking Jesse extending his hand towards mine. My jaw dropped. How gentlemanly! I smiled (Oooh, I regret the cheesy look on my face) and reached for his hand. He pulled me out and we walked arm in arm out.

"First Bryce, then Tad, now this sexy guy! Who _is_ he? He's so yummy looking! I want him."

I noticed Jesse turned pink slightly, (obviously he's heard his sister use the word 'sexy' before) but we just walked away from his car. He wrapped his arm around my waist, and with his free hand, held the clicker and we heard a satisfying 'click' as his car went under lockdown.

"Whoa, awesome ride, dude!" someone exclaimed. Jesse just ignored everyone. Everyone but me, that is.

* * *

"Suze. Suze! SUZE…hello, earth to Simon. Gosh, as soon as you show up with Prince Charming, you decide to ignore the little people?" I turned and saw CeeCee and Adam running towards us.

"Oh! Hey!" I hugged CeeCee and then introduced Jesse to them both. Jesse went and talked to Adam while I talked to CeeCee. "How did your visit with Aunt Pru go?"

CeeCee visibly shuddered. "It was terrible. The parents were out of town, so they sent me to my nearest relative. I mean, come on, I'm a _senior._ Is that not awesomely mature an age or what? But whatever, they don't care. They just shipped me to my freak aunt. I had to spend a month listening to my daily horoscope, how I was going to die in a week, how Venus was in some weird position and Uranus was full of crap. Really. Like I need all that. I'd rather eat the school corn dogs than spend another moment with her." CeeCee rolled her eyes. Here, Adam sniggered, coming back with Jesse.

"Yeah, and how your boy relationships were going down the loo."

CeeCee glared at him over her glasses. "Maybe with certain people…but anyway, I'm not here to argue with Adam. Did you see this?" Adam scoffed and claimed that he and Jesse were going to go see if his car was intact.

CeeCee showed me a newspaper article. I looked at the face. He was familiar but…

"You don't know him?" CeeCee shoved the article under my nose. "Don't tell me you didn't even read your schedule, let alone your letter!"

Uh...correction; I don't READ letters. Only the ones Gina write. But CeeCee didn't need to know that.

"Everything was in the letter!" The letter in the mail described new things, rules, guidelines, supply lists, and new students that have enrolled a month earlier. They all write an article about themselves. Jesse, unfortunately, and myself when I was new, didn't enrolled until recently.

I shook my head. "I've been busy." Understatement of the year. Try "I've been stalked by a ghost who's after my body and wants me dead and wants to take over my body." Talk about invasion of the body snatchers.

"He's a world famous surfer! And he's attending our school." Typical of CeeCee to read everything.

"Sorry, but I have better things to do than that. I'm assuming you want to interview him, you know, ask him what the difference between the West Coast and Australia is and if the risks of shark bites is -"

"Read." CeeCee hissed.

So I did.

_Welcome me, Matthew Copan, to _Junipero Serra Catholic Academy_. Call me Matt. It makes my life easier. One syllable, you know? I'm a world famous award winning surfer born here, in Carmel, but then mom and I moved to Australia in fifth grade. I enrolled-_

I didn't bother reading the rest; I froze, staring at the picture. I knew him! He was the guy at the beach the day Jesse came back! Of course, I couldn't say that, but still. I met up with him and he flirted and we talked. Then his weird Addams' Family friend Billy asked for him. I remembered that he wasn't the brightest bulb in the bunch, him not even knowing that Scarlet O' Hara was the one who said "Tomorrow is another day" but I didn't remember any Australian accent.

"And what," I asked, "is so important about Matthew Copan any-"

Someone interrupted, "And what _is_ so important about Matthew Copan anyway?"

CeeCee and I both whirled around and my breath caught. He wasn't anything as hott as Jesse, but those turquoise eyes seriously just took your breath away.

He grinned. Wow. Such white teeth. Must have cost a fortune. "Hey! I remember you! It's Suze, right?"

I nodded. His grin grew even wider. "Wow. How could I ever forget your eyes. Or that face. Or that body in a swimsuit?"

I knew that he was flirting, but I mean, it still felt so great to be complimented like that. Maybe he was like Adam, always a flirt but…

You know. Jesse.

"Suze, you _know_ him and you didn't _tell_ me?" CeeCee sounded indignant. I shrugged helplessly.

"Hey, do you mind if we do something together? Later, I guess. You aren't taken, are you?" Matt eyed me expectantly.

"Uh…yeah I am, but it doesn't have to be a date."I felt kind of guilty...but hey; one date. Harmless.

Matt shrugged. "Sure, as long as I'm with you." Ha. He sure knew how to sweet talk. "What's your real name anyway?"

I opened my mouth, but someone said, "Susannah." I turned around and saw Jesse and Adam walking towards us.

"Well well well…fresh faces…new meat…" Adam studied Matt, then CeeCee's blush. "Making acquaintances, are we? Well. My turn. Hi. I'm Adam." He wrapped his arm around CeeCee's slender shoulders. "I'm a taken straight white male who loves CeeCee, fantasies involving an elopement with acertain green eyed gal, beaches, sunsets, and coffee. I also like…"

Jesse slowly steered me away from Adam, CeeCee, and Matt as Adam went on with an "I also hate…" list, which if I heard correctly, had an utmost curious name, Bradley Ackerman, on it and almost half the student population.

Before Jesse could speak, it was time for us all to stand in our separate lines, according to gender, and listen to the announcements. But according to Jesse's scowl, he saw everything that he didn't want to see.

* * *

As Jesse and I walked to our first our class, which, surprisingly, we both had, as well as second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh period, we were stopped by

Kelly Prescott and Debbie Mancuso. Kelly, the most popular, prettiest girl in the whole valley. I felt myself cringe slightly at the thought of Jesse meeting Kelly. Would he start to forget about me?

Kelly was in a white skirt and pink top with, sadly, awesome strappy Sergio Rossi shoes. I was slightly glad that I left my own pair in my closet. Debbie was…well, I wished I could sic Sister Ernestine on her. With that miniskirt, you'd think that she was suspended, or, the very least, humiliated in front of the whole senior class. Like me involving my Betsey Johnson skirt.

"Hey Suze!" Kelly gushed. "Wow, you've got yourself a bitchin' boyfriend." They were talking about Jesse as if he weren't there.

"What's your name?" Debbie asked, eyeing Jesse's…err, lower region. I clenched my fist. We did NOT need a confrontation over Jesse. She could have Dopey. For free.

"Jesse." He smiled that smile that made me melt. And that voice, not as soft as Tad's, but pretty darn sexy, "Pleased to meet you." He shook Kelly and Debbie's hands formally.

Kelly obviously liked what she saw, and all thoughts of Paul and sugar plums danced out of her head. "Wow! A real business type of guy. I'm obviously going to get class president this year…again…would you like to be my running mate?"

Jesse looked confused. "What?" His was looked confused until his eyebrows went way up when she said the word "Mate". Obviously that didn't bode too well with him.

Debbie giggled, her eyebrows arching dangerously and my thoughts were "Botox." She flicked back her honey blonde curls.

"Jesse, you're just so adorable! We just _love_ your accent!" Kelly continued gushing and she held his face in her hand, which was pretty hard. Because Jesse was standing really stiff, straight up, and he's like, six four or something.

Debbie wanted to be smart for a minute. "I KNOW! It's like, **_so_** French! I mean, you have that Alps look! Sooo gorgeous!I love yodelers."

Jesse raised an eyebrow. Kelly, not being the dumb blonde, noticed and poked Debbie with her nail.

"Ouch! Whaddaya do that for?"

Before they could start bickering in front of us, I said, "Debbie; Jesse's **taken**. Okay? **Taken**. Yeah. By who? By **me.**" Then I walked to Jesse's side. He slipped an arm around me again and we walked past them.

"_French_?" Jesse asked incredulously as we were out of earshot. He laughed.

And so did I.

Before we got to our first hour door, Jesse said, "Susannah, I will always love you. You don't need to look so pained every time I'm near the opposite gender. I didn't really want to meet them. I mean, _French?_ That is so insulting."

* * *

Mr. Walden made him stand up and tell a little about himself.

I felt so bad for Jesse.

And it didn't help my nerves when all of the lady population was staring at him as though he were a nice bit of steak.

Not helping. I buried my face in my palms, then tried to admire my manicure but I mean, the guy you went to limbo for was standing at the front of a hormonal class of teenagers. Yet he was oblivious to his natural charm.

"-and as you probably already know, Miss Susannah Simon is my girlfriend and I love her with every fiber of my being so if you aren't doing her a kindness, you have me to answer to."

_"If you aren't doing her a **kindness**?"_

Everyone turned in their seats to stare at me. I started blushing. Really. Our teacher didn't need to hear that. I looked at our lumberjack of a teacher, but he just looked amused. I looked at Jesse, and he just stared straight back at me with this look of adoration on his face.

Oh damn, how much I love him, I'm not even embarrassed anymore.

I could tell Jesse got the ladies' approval. But the guys…I waited with baited breath for their approval.

Turns out that he fit right in. There were catcalls, yells of me being a "babe" and such and one jock, forgot his name, another one of Dopey's friend, shouted, "Hey, party at my place. Ten o'clock. You're VIP. Talk to me later, bro!"

"Settle down, settle down…"

No one did. He ended up chucking a piece of chalk at CeeCee, who was questioning him aloud in class about if his virtues were innocent, but then again, Mr. Walden wouldn't be mad at Jesse; remembering my first day, I recall him doing the same thing and he favors me, to be frank, except he didn't have a look of "I like him/her already" pasted across his face on my first day. Besides. Jesse kept on apologizing. That was bound to be some cookie points.

Jesse obviously didn't think he'd fit in. Turns out he became the most popular guy in school in a matter of one hour.

Even with the nuns.

* * *

Second hour. Our calculus teacher (how I got into calculus was beyond me) Sister Ruth did not know the meaning of "droning." She was lecturing about finding domains on functions, polynomials, and tangents made me not really give a damn. Even when I already didn't. (A/N: Newsflash: I don't take calculus yet, sorry, I don't know what I'm talking about)

However, Jesse was listening with riveted concentration. I threw my cheapest Bic pen at his desk and he didn't even flinch. For being new to the whole "learning in the twenty-first century", Jesse was an avid learner. Besides, by the way he was taking notes and all, it looked like he actually understood everything that came out of Sister Ruth's mouth. Actually, I think he did. Sister Ruth was walking around the classroom and picked up his spiral with a pleased look on her face.

"Why, Mr. de Silva obviously is an eager learner."

Jesse nodded. "What were you saying before that? I didn't quite catch it, pardon me. You were discussing how this one function …?"

She gave him a wide smile. _Oh God…teacher's, err, Nun's pet…_

"The chain rule is used for computing the derivative of a function of two variables composed with a curve. Good show, Mr. de Silva! I like you already." She winked at him and I tried to hide a shudder. Everyone was in too much of a stupor to notice, though.

I wrote a quick note to Jesse, who was still scribbling away. He didn't bother reading it, only shoved it up his sleeve, and read it only when Sister Ruth had stopped talking to get a drink from her used Gatorade bottle.

Jesse wrote a quick reply and dropped it on the floor, stomped on it, and kicked it directly under my heels. I blinked.

He was a born note passer.

Bending down, I picked it up.

_Susannah, querida, do you not mind? I'm trying to learn right now. This is so interesting! I cannot believe that I, back when I was _alive_, never learned this. I cannot wait until after class, however, because this silence is contagious! Why is everyone asleep? They should be writing notes down! Well, not "notes" as you fondly call it, but actual, knowledgeable notes. Concerning advanced calculus. This will come in handy, I am assuming. Oh! Our dear Sister is about to continue. I must listen. Sorry, but we have the rest of our lives together._

_Love, Jesse._

_PS: for every note we write, I shall teach you some Spanish. I suppose it would be unnerving, living in a house full of people speaking a completely different language, no? _

_Today's phrase: te amo, mi amor_

_Definition: _**I love you, my love**

There was a heart after Jesse's name. Quite a nice heart, actually, not the demented ones guys scribble on Valentine cards. This was a beautiful heart, written specially in a red pen. Next to the heart, however was a little picture of me thinking hard. It was a really good picture that made me really beautiful looking with my green eyes penned in green pen, and under it was written: _how you always look to me. Make-up or not, I will always love you._ I felt my throat tighten and I tried to swallow, but I couldn't. Jesse, who was obviously waiting for a reply, a thank you of some sort or something, looked behind himself to the right and saw me…

Crying.

Not huge, fat tears, but my eyes were watering, that was for sure.

I needed a Kleenex after this class. His eyes widened and he mouthed, "What's wrong?"

I opened my mouth, but…

"Miss Simon!"

I jolted in my chair. "What!" I wiped my eyes hastily.

"What is in your hand?" she barked. I looked down and saw the tears splattered on the pen. Luckily, it was ball point, so the words weren't ruined, but, _man…_me crying in class over a picture my wonderful boyfriend drew…I didn't even know he could draw.

Suddenly, the letter, not note, was snatched out of my hands.

"Oh! Please don't read it aloud, Sister!" I pleaded. _Damn her…_

"Susannah, querida-" _Damndamndamndamn__ her! I don't care how virginal and holy and pure she is, I just want to- "_do you not mind?" By this point, everyone had their heads up and was listening to the note, finally figuring out that Sister Ruth was not reading from her own lecture notes, but a student's note. Jesse stood up.

"Sister, it is my fault. Please, don't read it aloud, I was just trying to-"

She eyed him. I turned beet red. God! This was all my fault! On the first day of school, too! "Mr. de Silva, sit down."

He did, but didn't take his eyes off of Sister. I was flushing so badly, I was sure that I was going to stay that color. Sunburned looking.

"Now. I will not continue this waste of time, but I assure you all; read chapters one to three because we'll be having a little…ah, test soon. Good day!"

And class was dismissed. As Jesse and I walked out, I snatched the note off of Sister's desk and stuffed it in my pencil pouch.

* * *

I plopped down on the bench next to Jesse. Thank God all the hours were shortened today, because of it being the first day of school. It wasn't actually _lunch _lunch, but it was a short break, so the new students would know what life would be like everyday.

"Well? Are you enjoying yourself?" I asked him. Jesse was leaning against the table, elbows supporting him. He didn't answer, just asked me, "Susannah…why are the girls over there staring at me?" He seemed quite unnerved, to be honest.

I looked to where his gaze was. "Oh, don't mind them. They're probably just admiring your body."

Jesse was confused. You know…confused is a good look for him. I mean, well, _everything_ looks good on him. I mean, with his lower lip jutted out slightly, and his head cocked to one side, it was just too hott to resist.

"Huh." He said and leaned closer to me, his breath warm on my face. "Well, no one will mind if I-"

"SUZE!" Jesse and I both looked up. _Paul. _He was on crutches, with a slight limp. Kelly and Debbie and crew were trailing after him, holding his stuff. He didn't even notice.

"Suze." He sounded breathless. "We need to talk."

I snuggled against Jesse. "Okay. Shoot. And don't tell me; this is about Crissi."

He nodded. "You know how she has all the articles my Gramps wrote? She can just read through them, or just ask Gramps. I hope she chooses the former, however, because any sign of paranormal activity is gonna make Gramps' brain go haywire. I mean-"

Suddenly, he noticed his followers were intently listening in. Debbie didn't even bother to hide her obvious interest. "So who's _Crissi?"_

Paul gave me a pointed look, his ice blue eyes piercing my own green ones. "We'll talk later. I got to-"

"SLATER! Du-ude!"

Matt sauntered towards our poor bench. Jesse groaned. I couldn't blame Jesse; all he wanted was some quiet time with me.

And, if I'm lucky today, snog me.

Maybe I should see Aunt Pru about my horoscope…see if my sadistic star I was born under is in a good mood.

"Hey, buddy, are you able to go surfing today or what?"

Paul grimaced. "Does it look like I can?" He gestured towards the crutches and raised an eyebrow. His thoughts? "Just get the hell away from me." Only, he didn't say the word hell if you know what I mean.

Matt gave his leg a look. "Don't look terrible…the wetsuit should protect it. I mean, it isn't cut, right? Whatever. Today, the waves are gonna be awesome! Better make it there before low tide, huh." Matt suddenly noticed Kelly, Debbie, and me. He directed his smiled at me.

"Suze! Hey babe!" Debbie looked disappointed and crossed her arms angrily.

Matt's gaze went to Jesse. "Hey," he tilted his chin, "do I know you?"

Jesse smiled. "I'm not sure, but my name is Jesse. Jesse de Silva." _Susannah's boyfriend…_he thought. I tapped into his mind. He looked at me weirdly and suddenly, I couldn't. Read his mind, at least.

"I see…" Matt's eyes wandered to the arm that was across my shoulders. I felt slightly embarrassed and shrugged Jesse off. He got the message and shifted a little. I sat a little farther away.

"Hi." I smiled, flashing the ol' pearly whites. "How do you like California?"

"I like what I see." He winked at me. "Believe me, the scenery is gorgeous."

I blushed slightly, pleased at this remark. Paul rolled his eyes, and muttered, "Stop hitting on her". Jesse's jaw suddenly went stiff.

Jesse looked at Paul. "Paul. Shouldn't we be talking…?" He widened his eyes and Paul got the message.

"Oh! Right." Surreptitiously, he said, "Yeah, sorry Matt, we got to go talk about Student Council…you know, next meeting, whether we should hire someone to polish our founder's head a little more with axle grease or something, you know…"

Totally sarcastic. But in Matt's happy world, he didn't really get the definition of sarcasm.

"Yeah! Okay, dudes, take care. Peace." Then he sauntered off, with Kelly and Co. trailing after him, thrusting their cell phones at his face demanding for his number. Which he gladly obliged, of course.

Wow. What an easy way to get rid of them all.

"So?" I turned to Paul, leaning closer to Jesse now that Matt was gone. Jesse didn't move. "Back on topic. How can I tell if it's Crissi, then?"

Jesse shifted around and after a pause, put his arm around my waist. Paul either needed a hearing aid or just was distracted because he didn't answer. He was just staring at my midriff where Jesse's arm was. If I didn't know better, I would have thought he was checking out my cleavage. But I do. I live in California now.

"Paul?"

He blinked. "Oh. I told you, there are at least two things on a ghost's past body that will reflect on the body they take over. Say, you're a ghost. You have green eyes and, I dunno, Angelina Jolie lips. The body you take over will lose those two traits, and your significant ones will show."

"So…if Jesse was a ghost…and he took over someone's body…you'd see his scar and…" Paul cut me off hurriedly.

"Exactly. That's a way to identify _them_." Paul was actually trying teaching me something.

"Okay, so how can I tell if it's Crissi? Would you have any ideas?"

"Well, for one thing, Crissi has green eyes. Also, she has a tattoo of a lily, the flower of death, right below her collarbone on the right."

I thought hard. "That would be where…?"

Paul flushed. "It would be right above her breast." Somehow, this tidbit of information unnerved me.

"Wait…how would _you_ know?"

"Let's just say I'm not a saint, all right?" he snapped. Suddenly, his face looked drained. "Believe me, I know, and I'm regretting it."

No one said anything. A look at Jesse told me he was thinking hard and Paul was…well…

Still ogling at the arm around me.

"So…we're a team of ghostbusting mediators?" I nudged my head towards Jesse, then back at Paul. I stared into his intense blue eyes.

He didn't say anything. Then, "Yeah, I guess we are."

"Querida. I have an idea."

Paul and I jumped. Well, I did. He was on crutches. Paul's eyes were just startled and if it weren't for the bench, he would have hit the ground, maybe even cracking his mandible like that Jamie girl. I caught his crutches before they hit the ground and laid them on the table behind us. I mean, it was a picnic bench, with two boards on either side of the table, connected by a shaped metal pole thing. Paul landed on his hands, scowling when his he sat down; I saw three nasty splinters.

"What we should do, is just monitor you…not let you out of our sight or anything and-"

I nodded. "Right. So, basically, I have my own body guards."

Jesse furrowed his eyebrows. "Body guards? What are those? Oh, never mind. But also-"

I opened my mouth but then, everyone on the school paper started flocking towards me, notebooks and pen in hand.

"Suze! You were on the news! You actually saw a murder?" They just _suddenly_ mention it _now?_ When I'm finding out Jesse's brilliant plan?

I knew what I looked like; a deer under headlights. Only…as David said, they only do that because they are transfixed by the bright light.

Said in simpler terms by me, of course.

"What happened? Who was it? Was it that one senior Jamie Lefeyre?"

I blinked. Jamie _what?_ "Listen, I don't want to talk about it." Suddenly, comprehension dawned on me; I had witnessed a murder. I guess the possible threat of _me_ being the murdered kind of struck a nerve so I didn't register the other girl's death. And she just _died_ like that.

"What happened?"

"Listen! I don't. Want. To talk about it!" I gritted my teeth. "Watch the news, why don't you!"

I saw CeeCee and realized that she was itching to ask me. I shook my head, meaning to say, "I'll tell you later. Maybe."

"No! Just watch TV, people! God! You are all freakin-"

"Leave us." Someone said quietly.

Everyone hushed as Jesse stood up. Compared with this crowd, Jesse was the most imposing. Towering over everyone, he quietly said, "can't you see she's in enough distress? Leave her alone."

And you know what?

They did.

* * *

"Hey, are you getting a ride with Jesse?" the epitome of Stupid asked me. It was after school, and Jesse and I had things to discuss with Father Dominic.

Only…currently, Jesse was discussing Geometry with…_Sister Ruth_. I've come to hate her almost as much as I hate Sister Ernestine. Almost. Not quite. But I guess over the year, I will. Then again…she hasn't criticized me about my wardrobe. Nor any of my skirts.

Yet.

"Yeah. I am. Why?" I was sitting on the bench Jesse and I were sitting on earlier, waiting for him.

Jesse, I mean. Not the idiot talking to me. I casually flicked dirt off my heel onto his Nikes and pretended that I didn't know him. I watched his thick, wrestler neck in amazement. Was he on steroids? Jesse's neck was way more appealing…not all red and sunburned and sweaty looking…at least he was a natural. Jesse. Not the Epitome of Stupid. How long can one take to talk about...math?

"Well, I wanted to check out his ride. You know, it's a Lamborghini. With spinners. I don't know how much horsepower, or the engine, but I mean, it's sweet. You would know. You were in it." I looked over one mountainous shoulder. Was Jesse finished talking to Sister Ruth or what? Maybe…-no-, Debbie didn't catch up with him. Because I knew where Debbie was.

I rolled my eyes. "You go do that, Dope-err, Brad."

He eyed me cautiously and incredulously said, "Dope! Are you calling me a crackhead?"

I shrugged. "Not exactly crack …thinking along the lines of 'steroids'." I watched his face with feigned nonchalance. His face turned red. I didn't care if he was on steroids...not really. I love making fun of Dopey. It was a way to entertain myself when I was desperately bored.

"Don't you have to be with someone?"

"_What_? No. Wrestling doesn't start until-"

I waved my hand irritably. "No no, you idiot. Debbie. Don't you have to be with some-"

"I heard you the first time," he snapped. "But why the hell would I want to be with her? I freakin' hate her."

"Well…she _is_ right behind you…"

* * *

I think Brad officially hates me. But that's okay. Because I know Jesse loves me.

See what love can do for you?

We walked arm in arm, away from the couple arguing five yards behind us. Jesse, in his other arm was (not some other girl) a huge pile of Algebra, Trig, Geometry, and Advanced Calculus books. Seriously. He's a pimp for books. I was surprised that he could carry so much weight with an arm. That had to be at least fifty pounds.

I have to share his arms with _books._ Is that degrading or is it just me?

"So…" Jesse asked me casually. Too casually. "what did you do?"

"I was thinking about you and your obsession with learning. You obviously _know_ Everything we've been discussing for the past years! I mean, come on, you're really smart. I can't even believe I'm in love with a smart guy."

"Flattering, Susannah, but I need the extra practice."

"But you don't need it! It's a waste of time!"

"Susannah…" his voice was hat you could only call tolerable. "I feel as if I've been missing what I could have learned before. It's my duty to know now, so starting today, I'll cover this book," he nudged the algebra book, "by today, finish it, and start on geometry. So." His arm shifted and went from my shoulders to my waist. "What did you do to Brad's intimate relationship?"

"Number one, it wasn't intimate, it was more so what you nineteenth century people call an affair. Besides, he'll be glad I did it. Eventually. He'll get over it."

"Other than that. What did you do?"

"Oh. I think I basically made Brad's life a living hell. Either that, or he's going to bang her later."

Jesse frowned. "Bang her? What is that supposed to mean, querida?"

I smiled innocently. "Nothing …_really_…I don't know if you'd understand."

"I'm not a complete idiot."

"You are if you're in love."

"Which I am, but try me," he teased and we both stopped walking. He bent down and kissed my promise ring, then we both continued walking to Father Dom's office.

"So? What does it mean?"

* * *

I didn't tell him. I mean, what could I say?

After knocking on the heavy wooden door, white haired Father Dom beckoned us in, then locked it. We got straight to the point, without talking how Jesse's life was, or how we liked the school year so far. I mean, come on, the first day of school. What do we know after a summer of brainwash and sun?

I sank lower in the comfortable leather chair.

"-yes, I did watch the news yesterday. I saw this…girl, Crissi, you say? And she is after you?" I had pulled out a PSP and started playing some sort of weird action game.

Jesse nodded. He was the only one talking because I got so tired of repeating things. I would counter him if he said something wrong. We had been in there for about two hours, and yet Father Dom didn't say anything resourceful yet. "She knows how to transfer bodies, because of Paul's grandfather. She is after Susannah's body."

"Oh my." Father Dom, behind his glasses, his baby blue eyes were wide in shock. "Surely not? You can't possibly-"

"Yes, it is. Did you not see the camera shot of Office Depot? You saw her come out of Miss Lefeyre's body. Do not deny it, Father. You _know_ we can't avoid Crissi forever."

"Yes, yes, I understand. But good gracious! Susannah!"

"Yeah, I know." I spoke. "Crissi's after me. Big whoop. Can't we just exorcise her and get it over with?" Surprisingly, I was quite calm this whole time, not breaking into hysterics at all. I was doing pretty darn good.

"Well," Father Dominic said finally, "with a good dose of medication, we can keep you unconscious with-"

"WHAT!" Jesse and I both yelled. I dropped the poor kid's PSP, heard it clatter onto the floor,and stood up, my joints aching. I should watch that kickboxing tape again. I need it. Where did it go?

"You can't just drug me senseless," I protested. "I'd rather be exorcised myself. I mean, you can dream when you're drugged, right?"

How did that one thing go?

_I see you when I dreaming,_

_That's why I wake up screaming._

No way was Father Dom going to drug me. I mean, he threatened to put _lice_ in Bryce's hair! He never got to, but what a disaster it would be if he did! That _gorgeous_ hair infested with lice...I shuddered.

I can't believe a priest would even _think_ it.

"Well then," he huffed, "what do _you_ propose?"

* * *

"Absolutely not. I _forbid_ it!"

Jesse and I both cast bemused looks. "Listen, Father Dom, I had been rooming with him for, how long? Never, _ever,_ has he taken advantage of me. Nor mention the fact that he was ever sexually active." Even though I had wished it. Father Dom ignored the sexually active part.

"Yes, but, he's alive now!"

"Why do I feel as if you two are pointedly ignoring me?"

Father Dom gave Jesse the twice over. "We NEED to talk." I picked up the PSP. Damn. I think I did break it.

* * *

That was how we led to the conclusion that I should always be by Jesse's side.

Translation: I was going to be sleeping with Jesse.

Okay, not having sex with Jesse, but just sharing a bed. Sleeping in the same bed, whatever.

And we'd have all this Roman Catholic prayer sung around where we sleep so A) Crissi, an evil spirit of Satan, can't come near us and B) God bless Jesse and my souls if we are to do anything…indecent.

Sure, Father Dom protested, but what else could we/he do? I mean, if we tried to exorcise Crissi, what would happen? She _knows _what one is…she isn't going to fall for the "New Life" thing like Heather Chambers did. So we still needed a master plan on how to get rid of Crissi. Later, we figured that if we see her, I was to give her as much bodily harm as my petite frame can. And, secretly I thought, I'd do another one of my infamous Brazilian Exorcisms.

No easy task. Especially with some chick who looks _exactly_ like me and weighs the same, probably.

I'll have to think of something better. I didn't know if I was the prey or the predator. Probably leaning toward the Prey side. Which isn't fine. But then, sleeping with Jesse? Hubba hubba. More than happy. (Even if we're going to be fully clothed and basically, just _sharing a sleeping space_, but no matter. Somehow, it still was romantic. One way or another)

Father Dom ushered us out as Sister Ernestine came in, demanding that there should be a new rule banning all miniskirts.

Maybe she did catch Debbie.

A/n: Please review!

That'll make me feel SO special! -

Please? Cash prizes!


	8. Ch 8 Confessions

Ch 8

Three days after the dinner party

_All night I've been thinking about the love of my life. I should have checked out those books in the library when I had the chance. All those "cheesy" romance books Suze has been reading…the ones you find sitting on the downstairs toilet. I've tried them out before, back when I was in seventh grade, but the emotions in those books aren't anything compared to what I feel when I see that unforgettable smile…and those eyes. So captivating like a moth drawn to flame…and irresistible like the ocean tide…its waves always coming to the shore. I guess I was the poor unfortunate insect left to burn…or the sand left on the beach…pulled away with the force of the tide. Which was caused by the moon; the tide, I mean. Gathering up my courage, I dialed up this special person. Such a lovely person; smart. Beautiful. Kind. Flawless. Perfect for a guy like me. But…who would like me? I mean, of all people…I mean, come on, that's… _untouchable. Reserved. Incest._ It's just wrong to go after someone who could very well be related to me in the future. I sighed sadly. Earlier, Suze mentioned that I had two personalities; one, the normal ninth grader deep inside that lonely little mind of mine, and the other was that super smart everything nerd that would just invade my soul like that fungus called-_

_There it goes again. I guess I felt like being the normal ninth grader for once. I try, seriously, I do. I try to be normal. Just once. Maybe, I won't screw up and go all E.T. on her-_

_I've got to stop reading those documentaries on extraterrestrials. Or Area 51. Yeah. That might be it, too. Science fiction might not be too appealing for date conversations, either. Even fictional topics. (Yeah, what do you think of Uruk-hai? I mean, not only do they resemble corpses, to me at least, but they're cannibals too! And did you know, that humans, just like in William Golding's Lord of the Flies, will indeed resort to human cannibalism when they're desperate. Yeah, I saw that on the History Channel on this show called "Weird Travels". Those soccer players who were stranded on a mountain ended up eating their own teammates in the fight for survival." Yeah. I'm sure that's great date material.)_

_I've _got_ to get rid of that educated side of me. _

_I __tried uselessly to __slick back my red hair and coughed a little when I heard the dial tone. I started to perspire. The antiperspirant Suze got for me just might come in handy. __I tugged on my suddenly too tight collar and gulped._

_Please God, please; let my first ever crush pick up…it was love at first sight. I can't help it if that's so wrong. Please oh please oh please oh please let the love of my life pick-_

_"Hello? de Silva residence__, this is" my mind, ignoring that part, caused me not to hear what else was said. "__… __s__peaking__." Who was speaking? Drats! My upper lip started to sweat. What do I say? _

_"Err, hi…babe?" I tried out the word I heard Brad use on every female that contacted the house. Even mom._

_"Who is this? David? What are you doing calling me?"_

_Ahh…just hearing…**His musical tenor voice! **I didn't think **he'd** pick up. I thought, at the least, Miss Social Queen Carmen would…I'm not even prepared! Err, oh gosh, this is so embarrassing…big brother protection…_

_"David? Dios, what is the meaning of this? Is this Suze's idea of a joke? Did you just say 'I'm not even prepared'?"_

_Did I really say that aloud? You think that me, with my extraordinary mind, would-_

_Well, it doesn't matter__ now, now does it_

_I sighed. I couldn't help it. Hearing the voice that had drawn me would be a dream come true. Jesse would understand. He wouldn't go all '__that's it, __we're moving back to Spain', would he? _

_I inhaled deeply, willing my frazzled nerves to stop jolting on me like that. __"I'm in love." There. It was out in the open. Out of the closet. The truth._

_There was a pause. "**What**!"_

_Shucks. Aww, shuckshuckshucks-_

_"David, are you all right?"_

_Dang, I had to get it out._

_"I'm in love._"

_There was a__nother__ long awkward silence. I decided to continue on__, using his stunned silence to my benefit_

"_With your sister.__ Is Valencia home? I want to talk to her."_

_"Oh! You're trying to talk to her?" There was a hint relief in his voice._

_It clicked__ as I thought about what I had said. __"Ooh, no! Nononononononononono…I'm not gay in any way whatsoever, nor drawn to both__ genders as so__ in the term 'bisexual'. I've just been inflicted by the __radically deranging __syndrome __know as__ 'love'. You see, this is only human nature, after there's been a drastic hormonal change in a man, such as my age, to suddenly be attracted to-it's the pheromones I tell you! But it could very well be __phenylethylamine__ for all I know! But I'm pretty positive it's the endorphins. The norepinephrine. Yes, that's it! __So-" _

_Instead of Jesse__ telling me that Valencia wasn't home__, I heard a sweet, husky __voice__. "Hello? Norepinephrine? Why are you bringing up euphoria-inducing chemicals?" _

_The speech I had just rehearsed__ mentally __flew out the window. This wasn't like giving a science presentation at the City Hall. No note cards, no nada. Just me, my scientific brain, and well…Valencia._

_Valencia__…_

_"Who is this?" she demanded._

_"Oh! Uh, Valencia! Hi!" I squeaked. "Um, it's me, David Ackerman,__ remember,__ you know, your friendly ol'…neighbor across the street, and I, um, just err, wanted to, um, wish you a happy, uh, birthday." While her voice was husky, mine was, well…squeaky. It was as though I haven't even reached puberty yet. Which, I have. Mentally of course. As a youth my age, I should have been growing hair on my legs, cutting my lip while shaving, anything. I was in ninth grade! But what did I have? An IQ of over 196. That was back when I was in seventh grade. I'm assuming that it raised over the two years. _

_"Oh! Thank you! You're the first one who mentioned it!"_

_"R-r-really?"_

_"Yeah! It's 4:32 in the morning.__ Everyone's still sleeping like a normal person, well, except for Jesse and me…and you…,__b__ut thanks!"_

_"Oh, um, you're welcome. Why are you up so early?"_

_"Couldn't sleep…and I have a modeling session__ later. I figured why not prep for it? In other words, eat a little before all that doesn't digest.__"_

_"Oh, um, wow. That's very early for a shoot.__ Well, I'm up because, I couldn't sleep either! Wow! What a coincidence! Well, I was surprised that Jesse didn't tell me to take a hike because all the girls, when we call are 'in the shower' but it's only because the girl we want to talk to doesn't want to speak with-well, never mind. I'm calling because__ I got you a gift! You can, um, pick it up, date her, I mean, later." __I was so glad I was on the phone…Valencia couldn't see the deep blush on my face__. GOSH. David, go and blurt that out! Cookie points to you, as Suze would say._

_I could hear the smile in her voice. "Thanks! I'll pick it up now."_

_She hung up and for a second, I sat there. Just for a bit. Probably a millisecond. Then I dressed the fastest I've ever dressed. I grabbed a t-shirt and khaki shorts that Suze bought for me last Christmas, saying that I'd fit in more if I wore baggy, surf stuff, shoved my legs through the pants and quickly thrust my head through the shirt collar. Twice, I accidentally bumped over my nightstand. Then I stood in front of a mirror and took out the contacts I had bought with my savings…seven years of saving my allowance. I removed my glasses and struggled as I put in the contacts, pulling and twisting at my eyelid. (I poked my eye quite a bit.) Then I picked up my bottle of hair gel…I spiked every inch of my curly head, hoping the spikes weren't _too_ much…or too high…or too curly._

_Picking up the gift I got for her, I ran downstairs._

_God, I hope she liked it._

_- - -

* * *

_

Suze's POV

I peered into the bucket again and coughed. Twice. Whatever happened to Tupperware? I wrinkled my nose. "No. That is NOT going in your car. Do you know how _disgusting _that is? Really. It's like, inhumane if you really think about it. Besides…who's going to hold it?"

"Susannah…"

"Seriously! Do you know how bad that'll stink up your car? You'll need those air fresheners. And the leather! Think of the leather. Do you know how BADLY that'll ruin your leather if it tips? What kind of sadistic girlfriend would let you do that? Not me. So in conclusion, let's not. I mean, it's free! Just, I don't know, dump it on the curb…feed the critters. We'll come back in your dad's pick-up for some more. It's not necessary."

"Do you honestly think that leather means more than me than the safety of querida?" Jesse leaned over his trunk, his torso stretched out and he stared at me with those dark eyes. He rolled onto his stomach and continued watching me. I was suddenly reminded of Spike and how his eyes would just follow your every move. I felt my resolve lessen slightly under that inquisitive and intelligent stare and I swallowed. I would not be hindered, or deterred. I stood my ground.

"Well, duh. I mean, come on; it's a Lamborghini. Do you not speak English?" My eyes drifted down to the bucket.

Jesse looked as though he were trying very, very hard not to smile, the corners of his lips twitching. He lifted the bucket up by its cheap aluminum handle with his index finger. It tipped precariously and I jerked backwards. I was NOT going to hold that bucket (of all things a _bucket)_ the whole car ride. That was NOT going to stain my halter top. No way. Even if it _was_ black. It was just too disgusting if I ruined my outfit. _Why _didn't I wear something more casual? If I had known Jesse would make a stop _here…_

"Susannah…" he said patiently. With one finger at the base, he tilted it towards me while the other supported the handle, showing me the contents inside as it sloshed around, staining the sides. "The bucket of chicken blood is Not. Going. To tip onto you and stain your shirt. I promise. If it makes you feel better, **you** can drive while I hold it the whole car ride home." It started rocking as he reached into his pocket for his keys. My eyes didn't lift from the bucket…not once.

"Me? Drive! I can't even pass the exam let alone have my License! I don't even know how to drive automatic let alone stick shift. If it is. No way. Besides…I'd end up trashing your car. We're both going to die if I even sit in the driver's seat."

Jesse looked up said, "Querida. It's for your own safety unless you're suggesting that we use human blood. Besides, you know me as the most stubborn person on the, ah, planet. We are not going to dump it onto the curb to feed the bloodsucking critters and that is final. _That_ would be inhumane. And a waste of this poor departed chicken. Now…" he calmed down, "…reach into my back pocket and grab the keys, would you please?"

- - -

* * *

I had to hold it the whole car ride. If you're thinking it, stop; I'm not some ditz…I'm used to blood and I've done exorcisms before, but the thing is, if you're wearing a two hundred some dollar outfit, a skirt your best friend bought, and an irreplaceable priceless halter top, you wouldn't want it staining either. And if you were riding in an even **more** expensive ride, you wouldn't want to ruin the leather. 

Besides, the whole microwave-blowing-up-lasagna-in-your-face ruined it too. I examined the blood and winced when Jesse hit a pothole. It splashed around and on the surface bobbed a hunk of chicken. I mentally retched and envisioned a nice…hot bath… (I tend to think better submerged in bubbly warm water).

"Susannah…" Jesse said patiently. Obviously he was getting a sickened vibe off me. Like when you're on a roller coaster, and you know the person next to you is about to hurl. "You are never like this…stop worrying…"

"Yeah, you're the one cradling two gallons of chicken blood. In case you haven't noticed, I don't feel much like sacrificing today." This time, Jesse really did chuckle.

"Susannah…you're a mature woman…the bucket isn't going to tip on you anytime soon and, ah, ruin your outfit. You know better than to do that. We're almost home."

I sulked as I sank into my seat and held the bucket away from myself. There was a moment's pause when we both stopped talking. We flew past the intersection and started going uphill. I instantly tilted the bucket away from me. "Jesse?"

"Si, querida?" I think he switched gears, I don't know.

"What happened to that house you bought? You know, after you came alive the first time. And Adam saw us kissing?"

Jesse actually turned his head to look at me when I said "kissing". "What?" He pressed the brake. Or released the clutch. I don't know.

"You know…that house. The awesome one you had customized?"

He smiled with realization. "Oh…that house." He shifted in his car seat. "Well, querida, the thing is, it's still mine…"

I crossed my arms. Or, was about to. Then I realized that that effect wouldn't really work…due to the two gallon bucket of chicken blood. I flinched. "Oh really…"

"Yes. But because I have a family now…my mother and father have decided to pay for it…but after I finish school…and settle down with a wife…"

My jaw dropped. A wife…he wanted a wife…wasn't that what the promise rings were about? I stared at my ring.

"Jesse? You want to marry me!"

Jesse smiled wryly. "No, I don't want to marry you, that's why I bought you that ring on your fourth finger…" he said sarcastically. I blinked. Wow. Sarcasm. This was new. "Of COURSE I want you as my wife! To love and to cherish forever. Mi amor. Si?" He calmed down a bit. "Why…is that a problem? Of course not now, we're not engaged yet" he said hurriedly and started to blush. I smiled. He was so cute. "No, no! I love you, Susannah, but we must get an education before an actual wedding. Right?"

I nodded. "Yeah. An education."

Jesse's head kept nodding. "Si. An education. Then a…" he gulped. "Ay, why did we have to bring this up!" Suddenly, Jesse parked the car in his garage. Shortly after the engine stopped, Jesse ripped off his seat belt and lunged towards me. "Come here!"

He leaned over the gear stick and bucket of chicken blood and cupping my face in his hands, started to kiss me. I leaned against the door and suddenly, there was a strange wet plopping noise. Jesse and I simultaneously looked down. Jesse, in his urge to kiss me, stuck his fist smack dab into the bucket. He pulled his arm out and blood started dripping. He unclenched his fist and in the middle was the chunk of chicken.

"Found the liver," he said sheepishly.

How romantic.

- - -

* * *

So the plan was, every other day or something, we'd be sleeping in different places…Jesse's house…mine…Paul's…the mission…for tonight, Jesse would be sleeping in my room. Depending on how persuasive I can be, he'll be sleeping on either the floor or…the floor. 

Jesse and I hid the chicken blood under my bed and we rushed downstairs. He quickly sanitized his arm in the bathroom and we plopped into our seats just as everyone picked up their forks. Ha! We _weren't_ late. I grinned at Jesse as I reached for a dinner roll.

Dinner at the Ackerman household was the same; Max drooling on your lap, begging with his soft brown eyes for a morsel, the food being passed around and eaten by everyone else but you, talk about table manners and Brad chewing with his mouth open, conversation about school, jobs, and college. I tried to swallow the quesadilla Andy cooked for me but then my mom spoke.

"So…what's this I hear about a project?"

I choked on the cheese, half of it flying out of my mouth. Brad gave an immature "ew" and reaching over his plate, bent and retrieved the flying hunk of cheese. Then he ate it. I coughed even more, repulsed. Gosh, what was he, an animal? And not the cute, fuzzy ones either. Sleepy was eating with us too, which he had been neglecting to do for the whole summer, really. He was looking rather, well, sleepy, and his head kept nodding off. So it was one big motley crew, I guess. Ha.

"What project?" Jesse put down his fork and swallowed. His eyebrow, the one with the scar, went up. I hacked at my lungs as Jesse patted my back.

Mom put her napkin down. "Well…Father Dom called from the mission…said you two were trying out for Student Council…?"

My eyebrows furrowed as I continued coughing, and reached for my can of diet Cola. Jesse saw me and grabbed it, quickly handing it to me. I smiled and chugged it down.

He turned to my mother and asked politely, "I beg your pardon?"

"Father Dom said that you two were going to try running as VP and-"

Brad interrupted through a mouthful of quesadilla. "Hey Jesse, didn't Kelly ask you to be her partner?"

"Don't talk with your mouth full," Andy scolded. "And please, could our dinnertime conversations not revolve around her?"

Sleepy blinked. "When was it not?" Without waiting for an answer, he buried his quesadilla deep inside his mouth.

"You know, Jake, in forcing the food down your esophagus, you are in great danger of choking. Might I recommend _chewing_ for once? That's the point of molars, you know." David smiled sweetly. Sleepy-err, Jake, just looked up and raised his eyebrows.

"Oh, yes. I remember." Jesse nodded urgently, trying to continue the Student Council subject, and asked if I had a catchy slogan. He was starting to get with the program, the whole twenty-first century thing. I scratched my eyebrow and shrugged. He continued talking. "You see, Brad, Kelly did ask me, but I declined and wanted Susannah to be my running mate."

"Oh, and by the way, Suzie, you have messages." Mom pointed with her knife towards the answering machine, its display flashing 'three'. I glanced at it, then turned to Andy. Wow. This was a first. My mother actually letting me listen to the messages at dinner.

"May I be excused?" I asked and strode to the phone. "Monday 3:56 p.m.:"

Suddenly, a voice came on and I froze. "Hey! Uh, hi, Suze? Listen, it's me, Matt? The guy at school and the beach? Yeah, hi, I was just wondering, even though I know you have de Silva, if you'd like to go out or something. You know, as friends of course. I'll bring Paul and even McTavish along. You can bring that albino freak-, er, I mean friend of yours. We plan on catching some waves. Come on. It'll be fun. Just, give me a ring, all right? Well, not a _ring _ring. Just a ring. Well, you get the point. I mean, that would be nice, but, whatever. You know. De Silva. Anyway. You have my cell. Call anytime. Can't wait. See you then! Righteous!"

"Monday 4:27 p.m.:"

"Simon! Hey! I know you've been busy lately, and I don't blame you, but we seriously need to talk." In the background, I heard Adam yell a "Hey!" "Yeah, that's Adam," Cee Cee confirmed, "and we really wanted to get some coffee, or for you, something less caffeinated. Give me a call back, okay? Yeah, so see you later!"

"Monday 5:38 p.m.:"

"Susannah, it's Father Dominic. I'm calling because of the Student Council meeting next…Tuesday. Yes, next Tuesday." What a liar. Can't believe it, a priest. Lying. "So if you would call me back that would be greatly appreciated. Good day, Susannah. Oh-by the way, make sure Mr. de Silva is with you."

"End of messages."

Think of all the people I had to reply to!

I quickly deleted the messages and stared at the machine. _How_ did he get our number? Matt, I mean. I was so glad I didn't have a cell phone…yet. Suddenly I noticed just how quiet it was in the kitchen. I turned around and saw everyone staring at me. Even Sleepy didn't look so, sleepy.

My eyes widened. "_What!"_

"Querida-what is-"

I jumped. The phone rang behind me. I let it ring and started walking back to my seat, willing to eat my greasy quesadilla rather than talk on the phone. Honestly, though, I don't know how people can stand so much cheese.

Jesse's eyes narrowed as he growled, "Aren't you going to answer it?" I blinked. Was he okay? I frowned.

"Whoa-kay."

I picked up the receiver and pressed 'Talk'. "Hello? Ackerman and Simon resi-"

"SUZE, Suzie, Suze Suze my woman! Suze, babe, is that you?"

I frowned. _Babe?_Just imagine if my mom picked up. "Err, who's this?"

"It's me, Matt. Matt Copan? Duh!" In the background, I could hear the waves on the beach and people shouting.

I looked around anxiously. "Oh, uh, hi!" it felt as though someone was stepping on my throat. "Um, listen, now's not a good time to-"

"So can you make it? We've been waiting for you!" he cut me off.

"Umm…" I frantically looked around and accidentally made eye contact with Jesse. He narrowed his eyes again and I cringed. "now is _really…**really**_ not a good time…" suddenly, the call waiting button went off. "Oh! Yes! Um, sorry, other line!" I pressed the button. "Hello?"

"Ackerman."

"Err, yeah, they all are, who's this?"

The girl on the other end giggled. "Is Jake or Brad there?" More giggling. Honestly, that was really sickening. They had to stop.

I blinked. "It's called 'dinnertime'. Call back later."

I hung up. The phone rang again and I jumped.

"Suze."

"Simon."

"Err, yeah, that's me. Who's this?"

"Uh…duh. It's that one albino you know. What are you, paranoid, or did senior year get to you?"

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh, thank God."

I could swear I heard her hold the phone farther away and rub the earpiece. Then her voice came back on. "Thank God what! I thought you were atheist or whatever. Never mind. Listen, were you _ever _going to tell me about the murder? A girl would think that her best friend would talk about something like that. You could give me a private rendition."

"Um, Cee Cee, can I talk to you later? I'm eating dinner right now…"

"Oh! Right, sorry, I know what a sacred thing dinner is for your family. Tootles, all right?"

"Bye."

I hung up and was about to put it back on its charger but then it went off again. Groaning, I picked it up.

"Hello?"

"Hi Suze! It's Kelly. Listen, Matt called me and invited me to the beach. He asked me to try and convince you too. By the way, is Jesse there?"

"Um. He's eating dinner with the family."

"Oh. Okay. I'll just call him later. Well, tell him I'm willing to partner up with him. Not that you're a sucky VP, you know? But, I mean, he's so, yeah. So can you?"

"Can I what? Be your VP? Hell n-"

"Come to the beach!" She said it like it was the most obvious thing.

"Um. I'm eating dinner right now too. With the family." Didn't Sleepy ever tell you how holy it was? It was against our religion to forsake it. I wanted to say. But I bit my tongue back. _Wow…if I keep biting…maybe I'll have a tongue piercing…_

"But it's only five!"

"More like five forty. Yeah, well, my quesadilla's getting cold so…"

"Oh, yeah! Sorry! Well, can't say I didn't try. Bye hon. Oh. By the way, the whole murder thing? Totally righteous how you handled it all. I could almost say 'Heroine Worship' right now. Well, ciao!"

Then she hung up. But before she did, the Call Waiting light flashed. I pressed talk. What is with _people _today!

"Suze speaking."

"Susannah…_hi_…am I interrupting anything?"

Crap. Just from that 'Susannah' I could hear the freakishly sugar-sweet tone. Father Dom wasn't happy. "Err, hi. Um, I'm kind of eating dinner."

He sounded slightly disappointed when he said, "Oh. Well, tell your parents I said, 'Hello', and is Jesse with you?"

"Um, yeah, want to leave a message for him?"

"No, where is he? I'd rather tell him what I have to say myself."

I motioned for Jesse to come to the phone. "Here he is."

Jesse frowned. "Who is it? Kelly?" Kelly? I decided to question him later.

"Father Dom," I mouthed. His eyebrows raised and he quickly grabbed the phone. "Good evening."

I sat back down at the dinner table but no one noticed; they were all listening in to Jesse's phone call.

"How did Father Dom know he was here?" my mom asked.

"Oh," I waved my hand airily, "he knows everything."

Her left eyebrow slowly went up.

"I mean—the whole Student Rep thing…" I added quickly.

She shook her head sadly and continued eating.

"-no, Father, I promise you; it's all right. We'll do fine… No… Nothing has happened…we have your blessings. Father Dominic, she hasn't come yet… Yes, we bought it… For protection. It's under her mattress. We're going to use it at night… No accidents… We're doing it… I understand; you being a priest…but Father Dominic; it's necessary! I love her! … Sorry, but a Catholic one takes too long, as Susannah says, 'How about Brazilian?' No! Of course not. I will not take advantage over her…you have my word, a Spaniard's honor…yes, good day to you too, Father… buena noche."

He hung up and shaking his head, resumed his place next to me. Brad, unfortunately, spoke up.

"What the _hell_ was _that_ all about?"

Andy, for once, didn't contradict him.

Mom stabbed at her lettuce and Doc quickly buried his face in his plate. Sleepy actually looked interested, and Dopey grinned stupidly and said his favorite when-talking-to-me four words; "You. Are _so_ busted."

And you know what? I knew I was.

---

* * *

Somehow, I don't know how, but Jesse sweet talked the 'rents into letting him sleep in my room. And they actually trusted him. They, however, did not trust me. Me! Talk about a way to roll out the welcome mat…talk about harsh. 

"You," Andy said, after he pulled me into the family room, waggled his finger in my face and looked me in the eye, "are not to do anything to Jesse, do you hear me?"

I blinked and scoffed. "As if."

"Don't use your feminine wiles to your advantage." I blinked. Since _when _did I ever use my nonexistent wiles? Like, never. Why did that sound so familiar? Oh yeah. Father Dom said that to me. A freakin' _priest_.

My mom looked at me, then at Andy. "Andy, honey, I don't think she's going to be doing anything…"

"Still, you never know. I'm just looking out for her."

"But if it's the right moment, you know, I'm behind you one hundred percent, honey." She patted my shoulder, "Just be happy. And don't forget what I bought for you. You're big enough to know now."

I groaned. "Can I leave now?"

---

* * *

As I've said before, I think better submerged in warm, soapy suds. 

I eagerly sank into the steamy water with only my knees and half my thighs and shins, neck and head showing, and sighed. It felt so good to relax. With two sides of my bathtub not against the wall, I let my arms hang over the exposed faces and gently let my fingertips trail the cool tiling. I shut my eyes and thought about today…about school. I grabbed the note that Jesse gave me out of my skirt (I had just let it slide to the floor) and studied it. I didn't notice earlier that he had written in a flowing cursive. I flipped it over and smiled slightly, then I tossed it expertly onto the counter.

_Now…what to do about Crissi._

Ignoring the cold feeling in my heart, I leaned against the cool sides and sank lower into the water until the loose tendrils of hair, which I had put up in a messy bun, dipped into the water.

_Who would know what to do…how to trick her? Someone smart…incredibly smart…_

I shot straight up, ignoring how cold it was out of the water. My eyes widened. Of course!

I stood up and grabbed my terry bathrobe, quickly put it on and tied the sash, wrenched open the door and raced into the hallway, water dripping onto the carpet.

I didn't have time for a priest. I needed answers. And I needed him now. Luckily, he was only feet away.

Or, so I thought.

---

* * *

I knocked anxiously on Doc's door. 

"Doc- I mean, David? You in here?"

I didn't hear anyone so I opened the door. I didn't see anyone so when I turned to leave, I heard a squeaky, "Uhh…be there in a sec!"

I walked into his room. Right when I needed him, he was off doing something else. Probably found a cure for morning breath or something. My ears, weirdly, had water in them, so my hearing was slightly skewered…and the fact that Dopey's Marilyn Manson cd was blaring out of his speaker. The walls in Doc's room shook, but maybe because Dopey was a room over. "Where are you?"

"Uh…not in my room."

I heard his voice come from the downstairs bathroom so I ran down the stairs and knocked. Again. "David? Open up. I need to talk to you. And no, this doesn't involve my calculus homework."

I frowned. He didn't say anything. I opened the door slowly and saw David. He whirled around with his eyes wide and quickly turned away. He shoved a box into the medicine cabinet.

"DAVID! What are you _doing_?"

He jumped and turned around, the box that he was hiding fell off the shelf before he could properly shut it. It slid across the tiling, amazingly. I clutched the front of my robe and picked it up. Black hair dye. I looked at him, shocked.

"Why the hell do you want to dye your hair?" I raised an eyebrow.

He looked at the ground and kicked at an invisible something. I noticed the big toe sticking out of his Hanes sock wiggle. "I hate my hair."

"_What?" _I said in disbelief._ "Since when?_ Your mother loved it._"_

Doc, I saw, looked chagrined. "I know…but that's the past. Valencia thought it looked funny. It's so different."

Oh. My _God_.

"You're in love? With Valencia!" I studied his apparel and my eyes widened; he was going for the preppy look! He was wearing a blue and navy thick striped tee, with a collar and everything. He even stuck his collars straight up I tell you! Baggy cargo pants… "Is that why you've been changing the way you look!"

Really, this was just too much to process. I burst out laughing.

He turned beet red. He pushed me out of the way and ran upstairs to his room.

Poor tyke. He had it rough. I followed him.

"Was it your gift, then?"

"Go away, Suze."

"No, let's talk. I'm a girl. You need some major girl information."

"No, I'm perfectly capable of understanding x and y chromosomes." He slammed his bedroom door shut. Pity that there wasn't a lock on it. I gave the bottom a gentle kick.

This really was way too much. I sat on the corner of his bed and watched him type furiously away on his keyboard. There was silence, save for the tapping of the keys.

"I'm sorry for laughing." Not really, but it was a start. I mean, I only laughed at the shock of it all. I mean, David? In love?

I thought of a way for him to open up. There was another tense silence then I realized what.

"It was because of Heather." I said bluntly.

He half turned, then his neck snapped back to the screen. He ignored me. For once in my life, David was _angry_ with me.

"The breezeway incident. Heather Chambers. It was because I was performing an exorcism."

He nodded slowly to the monitor, as if to say, "yeah, right, whatever," then his head practically did a three-sixty. Realization hit him in the face. "What are you talking about? Heather Chambers is dead. It's not possible that it was Heather's fault unless…"

"Unless she was a ghost."

David looked at me suspiciously. "A ghost. Ah. What are you trying to tell me, Suze?"

"Remember how that one ghost woke you up?"

He nodded. "Yes. I do."

"That was Jesse. Jesse de Silva, the guy you researched. The one who was murdered? And Dope-I mean, Brad, dug up his body while cracking his skull in the process? He was the ghost in my room…the room that you knew was haunted…and you wanted to trade with me. Just so happens that he was downstairs eating with us."

Doc's eyes widened. "That's not possible! Does that mean that everyone could see him? A dead person? And ghosts can eat?"

I shook my head.

"He-was he…_reincarnated_?"

"Not really…"

"Then…how…-"

"Don't ask me…I have no idea myself…I'm just the mediator. I don't know everything about all the ghosts I've had to send away."

"Jesse wasn't the only ghost?"

I laughed. "Hardly. In my whole life, I've probably met up with hundreds. They're everywhere, Doc. And it's my job to help them pass on. I can see ghosts, and not the recently deceased, either. But my job isn't completely easy. Some ghosts, let's just say, don't' want to leave. Like Heather." I nodded. "Paul, you know, Slater, and Jesse, Father Dominic, and a think a few others, can see the dead too.. I can't believe that back in NYNY, I didn't know any other mediators. Here, on the Monterey Peninsula, there are how many? Well, anyway, that's part of my confession…me, Susannah Simon, the Mediator."

"What?" He whipped out a notebook and pen from his desk and started jotting everything down.

"Mediator. Medium. Shifter…does the Ninth Key tarot card ring a bell?"

Doc's eyes widened. "I have three tarot decks! I want to see."

Doc went rummaging around in his drawers, then pulled out a thick tarot decks. He started shuffling and combining all his decks together, did some weird thing and then asked if I would pull three cards. I obliged. And out came three Ninth Key cards.

Doc was in awe. "Wow. Wow…" there was a moment when all he could say was "Wow", but then came the Hundred Questions game. Like one question, if ghosts were like dogs. I told him, "I've tried calling ghosts before" but I don't feel like calling up Crissi. I didn't think the reunion would be very…pleasant. I tried answering them all, but some got too personal. Like the one when I knew what a mediator was. See, I knew I could see the dead…at the age of two, actually, but when I learned what my _gift _was called was because of my father. Who died. But that's a separate story.

"So listen. Now you know my dirty little secret-"

"You saw my mom?"

I looked up from peeling apart his quilt. "What?"

"Did you see my mom." He repeated, but there was such conviction in his voice, I was sure he didn't need an answer.

I thought about that before I responded. Wording myself carefully, I said slowly, "Yes. I did. And do you know why it took her so long to pass on?" I didn't wait for his response. "She was calling you 'Red'. 'Red' 'Red' 'Red' 'Red' 'Red'. I thought she was referring to Red Beaumont, you know, and that's why I kind of met up with…bad people. And finally I realized she was talking about you. She'd probably roll in her grave if she knew what you were about to do."

His eyes welled up with tears. "I'm sorry, it's just that-she's really special."

My stomach instantly cringed. My God. He had it bad. I tried patting his shoulder but it came out really awkward. "Aww, jeez, Doc-don't cry…I need your help…I'm in danger."

He quickly wiped his eyes and stared up at me. "What do you need."

"Remember Crissi?"

He nodded. "I try not to, but contrary to my better judgement, yes. I do."

"She's still around."

"Yeah. She ran away, right?"

"No. She's dead. The cops won't find a trace of her, but she's still around. She's a ghost. Listen, ghosts only come back when they have unfinished business-"

"Like in Casper," David confirmed.

"Yeah…Casper…anyway, Crissi has some unfinished business."

"Let me guess-she wants to kill you?"

"Yeah. She wants to kill me. Or maybe it's something else, but she thinks she'll just off me while she's at it. Anyway, so I have a ghost who wants to kill me. But I can't just stop her," I said as Doc opened his mouth, "because she was a mediator too. She knows all my ghost-busting techniques, maybe even more. So exorcisms, like with Heather, are out of the question. I need a way to trick her into getting her back where she belongs. Anyway, we're all trying to think of a way to stop Crissi. Do you have any ideas? I need your help, or else, I'm going to die."

After my speech, Doc didn't say anything. You could say all this information was getting to him. He stood up and stared at his bookshelf, feeling the spine of the nearest "War of the Worlds".

Finally, he spoke. "How did she die in the first place?"

I blinked. I expected something, but not that. "Well," I shifted around uncomfortably. "there's a place off Ocean Avenue where I used to…"

Now David blinked. "What?"

"Just kidding. Anyway, there's a place up there called Shadowland." Doc nodded. "Not exactly heaven…more like…limbo…purgatory. And there are a bunch of doors in this really long hallway. There's fog everywhere. Believe me, I've been there more than enough times so I know. So when you're there, you don't touch the doors. At least, I don't. Because if you touch the doors, anything can happen. You don't know what's beyond those doors. Jesse…the second time…he fell through. And came back alive after how long. Crissi, when she fell through, she wound up dead. That's how she died. She fell through one of the doors. One of the many doors. But I honestly don't know what's going to happen if we pushed her in again. For all we know, she could become alive again. And so…that is out of the question."

Doc nodded, but didn't say anything. He stared at a spot behind my head, his eyes glazing over and unfocused. At first, I thought he was suffering from, a seizure or something. Then he spoke. I looked up at his standing self.

"So how many doors are there?"

I shook my head. "Thousands, maybe. Millions. I don't know. I've never gotten a chance to count them all…heck, I don't think you can." I scratched at an itch on my neck.

"Maybe, you could exorcise her again."

I blinked. Was this his criminally masterminded idea? "Um, David, I don't know if you realize this, but she knows what one is, okay? She'll know just from what I'm-"

He interrupted me. "How many types of exorcisms are there?"

I blinked again. Realization hit me. "Your right! She might not know what a Brazilian one is!"

His eyebrows went up. "What? Well, anyway, here's an idea. I'm still conjuring up the minor detailing, but here's the basic plan; you say that Paul, Jesse, and Father Dominic can see ghosts. Affirmative, right? They all have met with Crissi before. Well, perhaps you can be like, in a matter of speaking, live bait. Then while she's distracted, you could get Paul or Jesse or Father Dom to exorcise her. I mean, it's one against four, right?"

"Well, David, I'm sorry to say, but a ghost, when ticked off, can, well, really cause a lot of damage. I don't know if we can manage that-"

"Suze. Leave it to me. I won't let her hurt you. You're the bets thing that ever happened to me. Well, other than Valencia, of course. But I'll think of something. I promise. But in the meantime, I'll think of an idea, and you make some sort of Catholic protective thing against ghosts, all right? I'll need to go research, but I think I can manage it. Let's see…I'll need to stop at the library, then perhaps the…" his voice trailed off as he continued his mental list.

I smiled. "Wow Doc…didn't know you cared."

He visibly, you could tell his ego bubble went way up, brightened. He straightened his spine and beamed.

He couldn't help but smile. "Suze…you're not bad at all. But anyway," he glanced at his clock, "it's way past eleven. I think you should be heading off to sleep."

After such a wonderful conversation with my kid brother, I stood up, about to leave. Then I stopped. "Hey…what did you get her?"

For the first time today, he really, really grinned and started blushing…in a good way, of course. "You will never know."

- - -

* * *

I couldn't help but smile. I watched her sleep and my smile grew even more when she muttered my name in her sleep. To take my mind off her contented face, I tucked her into her covers. I must have gazed into space, but suddenly, out of my back pocket came a ring. I jumped and quickly grabbed it and stared. 

It was, what did Susannah call it?-a cell phone.

It rang again and I quickly flipped it around and pressed the green phone. Making sure she was not awake, I whispered, "Hello?" She shifted around and moaned a little.

"Jesse!"

I breathed a sigh of relief. "Mother!"

"Si. Where are you? We've been looking all over the house for you. No matter. Your father I and need to talk to you." Despite the sternness in my mother's voice, I smiled as I glanced at Susannah's sleeping form. "Now?" A glance at the bedroom clock told me that it was well past midnight.

"**Yes**. _Now._" She hung up, and I slowly, distractedly, flipped the outside portion over the numbers. I don't know if I had shut it completely, but I was too preoccupied.

How was I going to leave her?

I stared hard and then it came to me.

* * *

I gingerly wrapped the sleeping Susannah in her blanket-burrito style- and swung her lightly over one shoulder. Her hair grazed my neck as I opened the door. I tried to tuck it behind her ears as I descended the staircase. The house was silent, save for Max. He looked up from the Pottery Barn slipcovers and Dios, I could swear he smiled at me. I smiled back and swung open the front door. 

I jumped. Expecting no one, I had run straight into Andy. He glanced at Susannah on my shoulder, clearly asleep, her head lolling over, hair in her face, and her eyes shut, then up at me. I looked down.

"Leaving so soon?"

"I'll be back," I explained hastily, "I forgot my…pillow." I mentally crossed myself. "I just cannot leave Susannah, or let her out of my sight."

He grinned. "Strange excuse, but, good boy," and patted my free shoulder. Then he tossed at me the spare key and shut the door, careful to lock it. I caught it and nodded at him in the front window as he continued to watch me.

I strode across the street and unlocked my front door. I looked behind me and saw that the curtain was swaying in place.

As soon as I stepped past the threshold, my mother greeted me.

I smiled and let her kiss my cheeks. Then she noticed Susannah.

Her eyebrows rose.

"I promised to watch over her."

Shrugging, she kissed Susannah's sleeping face as well and then she nodded. "Sleeps like an angel. Looks like an angel. Is an angel…we all need to talk."

I looked at the clock again. "All right."

By now it was one o' clock. Why was Andy up so early? As with my parents? Were they all conversing with each other?

We walked into the living. Right above our sofa was a crucifix. I laid Susannah gently onto the couch and wiped a few stray bangs away from her face. Then I kneeled down and kissed her on her lips. "Te amo…querida." I whispered longingly, then brushed her lips with my promise band. Smiling, I turned around but stopped short. My parents were staring at me in unease.

"Que?" I questioned nervously and sank back onto my knees.

"Jesse…you're in love, _in_ love with Suze and didn't even tell us?" I smiled. Susannah _made_ them call her 'Suze'.

"I thought it was obvious…but yes," I said confidently, "I am in love with Susannah Simon."

My mother flashed Father a knowing look but he ignored it.

"Jesse…remember that time a while back when we described what a betrothed was?"

I shook my head. "No…" Where was this leading? I adjusted my body into a more comfortable position.

"Remember your betrothed?"

My smile faltered as I blindly reached for Susannah's hand-she whispered my name in her sleep and stirred, but otherwise didn't move.

Her grip comforted me and I heard myself say, "What betrothed?"

"We promised her parents long before you were born."

"Who?" I asked. "Why wasn't I told?"

"Because you weren't old enough. And we did tell you. At the dinner party with the Ackerman's and Miss Simon."

"No." I shook my head in disbelief. How could this be happening? "I'm already in love! I'm in love. With her!" My hand that was clenching Susannah's lifted, showing them, clearly, our promise rings and our hands, together. "Mi amor! Mi querida."

"Jesse…" my mother looked pained.

"Hector…"

"Don't call me Hector! My name is not Hector," I shouted at my father. My father's eyes widened.

"We love Suze just as much as you do, son! We'd _love_ her as a daughter. But this is something we can't break…"

"Who is it?" I demanded.

"We don't like her," papa added darkly, "spoiled little chica. No respect…constantly demands…a face like porcelain but a heart of coal…head as empty as a kettle."

"We've tried to break it off, but we can't."

"Let me do it! Who is it? Tell me!"

My parents breathed in deeply. "Maria de Silva."

* * *

A/N: Sorry it took so long! To my readers and to Addie, sorry. But I had to work on this forever. Before you people are all like, "Wait; Maria already had a life. She died at an old age. Why is she back? Well, to tell you the truth, my reasoning is that her life was sort of…well, 'be damned', you know? That's what it said at least. And so her future family all turned out to be not good people. So her life basically wasn't-well, I don't want to ruin it. Please review! 

R&R

What do you people think?


	9. Ch 9 Events

Ch 9

A/N: Wow, it's been awhile. If I've lost you, I don't blame you and I am incredibly sorry. But if you still remember, kudos to you! I've been away and busy, but I miss the fanfiction community…despite how corny that sounds. Well, read on, please. And Review. See? I haven't lost my touch…

The ending gets a little…**yeah**. A little graphic, but nothing terrible. I'm sure you've seen/read worse. But read on, please. I beg of you. Cookies to anyone who does.

* * *

"Now that the VP nominations are over, we're moving on. Class President. Any suggestions, anyone-yes?"

"I choose Kelly Prescott to be this year's class president."

"Thank you, Debbie, for your contribution. Yes, Mr. de Silva?"

"I nominate Susannah Simon."

"Good, Mr. de Silva. Adam? Who's your nominee?"

"I want you! -for the U.S. Army!"

"I appreciate the thought, but Mr. McTavish…"

"I know. Detention."

"Continuing on. Elections are next week, and I want you all to vote for someone…those nominated need to think of a speech…it's still the beginning of the year, but if I think that you're grades will start to plummet, you can kiss that title goodbye…"

Mr. Walden's voice started to fade as I thought about what had happened. It was odd; this morning, Jesse took me to school, as part of our new routine. He was tense and unbelievably quiet. My mind wandered to last night.

I remembered waking up, my face on my hand.

_I was facing a sofa and disorientated. What had happened? I remember falling asleep in my room but…where was I now? I heard loud voices from behind me and I decided not to turn my head. It wouldn't be very wise…I've learned that the best way to spy is to let them think you're sleeping. Suddenly, I recognized Jesse's voice. What was he doing here? I stared at the leather and realized that this was his sofa. His house. Then the thought, "Jesse might have sat on the exact sofa I'm on!" suddenly flitted through. _Ew. _I sound like a stalker. He's my boyfriend, God. Then Mrs. de Silva's voice. What were they talking about?_

"_We love Suze just as much as you do, son! We'd love her as a daughter. But this is something we can't break…"_

"_Who is it?" Jesse's deep voice sounded upset. Why was he upset?_

_I shifted around, trying to hear better but my ear slid against the leather and for an instant, I couldn't hear anything. When I finally situated myself, all I heard was, "Maria de Silva."_

_My heart froze and that's all I remember._

My eyes flitted open when I heard someone behind me whisper, "_Suze."_ It sent an uneasy chill down my spine. I felt someone blow on the hair at the back of my neck and I looked over my shoulder. The only person behind me was CeeCee. She gave me an odd look, but I shook my head. Odd…the windows were shut. And CeeCee wasn't the type to kid. I must be delusional. No questions asked. I wasn't in the mood for explaining my sudden acute paranoia. I rested my head on my arms.

_So sleepy…_

There was no warning, but suddenly everyone stood up and filed out the door. I was jolted back into reality and I looked around. The classroom was empty. Even Mr. Walden left the room. I was startled when I heard, "Querida." I looked up at Jesse, who just so happened to choose to tower over me. Quite the intimidating.

Jesse was the only one in the classroom. He shifted around the desks awkwardly, without looking me in the eye.

"Is something wrong?" he finally asked me. I frowned. Was something wrong with _me?_ What was wrong with _him_? I decided not to voice my opinions, however.

I smiled. Too sweetly. "Nothing," my smile grew bigger. "Nothing at all." It started hurting. "I'm just exhausted." To prove it, I laid my head back onto my arms and tried to sleep. Supposedly. Jesse, however, despite acting like a completely different person, noticed. Despite this, he failed to comment.

He just said, "Listen, Susannah, I have to go somewhere with the family tonight. I can't be with you tonight, but the ring is still there and you'll be protected. Would you like to come with me or stay home? It's your choice, because I know you have a bit of homework to do."

Yeah. That I didn't complete as I was passing notes.

I looked at him. He looked so sorry to be leaving me. But he needed some time away from me. I could tell. Probably to do something holy, right?

I trusted Jesse. Hell, it was _Jesse._

Again, he shook me out of my reverie. "Susannah…" he said patiently, "don't we have to get to our next class?"

My head shot up and I squinted at the clock. Shit. We had a minute.

I hauled my books, scrambled around and collected my pencils, then grabbed Jesse's hand. "Come on. We're going to be late."

"No, I didn't realize…"

Jesse allowed himself to be pulled into our next class. I plopped down into my seat, right when Sister Ruth was taking roll call. You know, in case someone snuck into the lavatory to have a cigarette. It happens, occasionally. I was opening my textbook when I felt a pokey Papermate pen being jabbed into my back. I leaned forward and felt a note fall between my chair and my back. Glancing to my right, I saw that Jesse was deep in concentration. I reached behind me and pulled the note up. I stole a quick glance behind me and realized that Matt Copan was in my calc class. He winked and leaned back into his seat; legs sprawled out against my chair backing and utterly relaxed. I looked up and, making sure that Sister Ruth was sipping water (this time, from a used McDonald's coffee cup), I opened the note.

"_Hey. Wuts up. Dude, y did u bail on me at the beach? I thought u weren't busy and we could have hung out. Well, wutever. I'm not normally like this, and I don't ask for favors, but ur a special scenario. R u busy tonight? I'm sure ur bf is too infatuated with his learning. Hes not gonna miss u."_

I looked to my right again. Yeah, there was Jesse, scribbling away in his notebook, occasionally looking up in earnest. I sighed dejectedly. Gosh, so this ancient…_nun_…who couldn't possibly have sex appeal was more to his liking than his physically capable _girlfriend._ Does that not say something to you?

I thought, "What the heck, Jesse's going to be gone, and I don't have that much homework. Why not?"

Smiling, I scrawled a note back. "_Sure thing._ _After dinner. Around 7-ish? Pick me up, or meet me there, whichever you prefer."_

I dropped the note to the ground and kicked it behind me. I heard Matt's chair groan under his toned body (_did I just say that_?) and he bent back up. There was a brief pause, then pencil. Another prod in my back and the note slid down my chair.

"_I feel generous. Gas has been pretty damn expensive but…"_

The scratch of chalk on a board startled me but it was only Sister Ruth writing the assignment. I looked back at the note and continued reading, feeling very exhilarated and…dirty.

My breath caught as I realized what I was doing. "_Where do you live?"_ he had scrawled.

* * *

"How an abbreviation for such a wonderful form of technology could be used to also abbreviate the evilest form of math on earth, I don't get," CeeCee fumed. Hell, that was practically, like, not English, she was so ticked off. She wasn't speaking proper English. I started laughing as her face turned a flattering shade of red. She didn't have the same period with Jesse or me, but it was the same nun.

I sighed. It was so close to the weekend! Lunch! Finally. Sheer bliss. Another half of the day and we were free. Jesse noticed my change of mood and decided to grace me with a smile. I felt my heart leap, just like it always did when he smiled, and I made sure my mind was completely blank, but it was such an effort. I was going to the beach with a friend. Just a friend. Nothing more than a friend. Just a guy friend who had beautiful eyes and a killer body…

…but not as nice as Jesse's. Remember, Suze! I felt sudden remorse. _What was _wrong _with me? Did I not care that I was putting our beautiful relationship at stake? No…he was just a friend. Just a friend. Nothing more than a friend. A friend who was exceptionally hott and_

"Is everything all right?"

I glanced up at Jesse and beamed. "Sure, everything's fine and dandy. More than that. But thanks for your concern," I responded. I instinctively hugged him and waited for his reaction. Instantly, I felt that façade melt away and he enveloped me in his arms. We fit perfectly and that reminded me that we were perfect together. I squeezed him a little tighter and felt something bulge near his waistline. We both froze. Was I the reason Jesse had a sudden erection?

"Cheeto?" asked another familiar voice. Jesse jumped back and I noticed he plopped his lunch on his lap. I stared. His face flushed and he looked very uncomfortable. I shook my head and looked at CeeCee. I saw her ogle at Adam for the slightest moment. Adam was sitting on a bench table, with his family sized bag of Cheetos.

"Cheeto?" questioned Jesse, his voice wavering. He frowned and cleared his throat. "What is that?"

Adam's eyebrow rose. He recovered from the shock and shouted, "Cheeto? You dare ask what one is? Only the best artificially colored cheese flavored cancer causing snack ever!" He inhaled. "Gosh, Jesse, you are so eighteenth century."

Jesse and I gave each other a knowing glance. Everything was back to normal. But what had happened? All we did was hug. What was on his mind? He smiled and said, "Well, close enough."

* * *

I waved to the de Silva's as they drove down the street. I noticed Jesse eye me. Was that…longing? I ignored it and just smiled. I blew a kiss, but Jesse probably thought I had something on my lips or something, because he failed to notice. I watched his lips as he mouthed, "te amo". I smiled. I really did love him.

When the car drove out of sight, I took off my university hoodie to reveal my swimwear, a cute string bikini with yellow ties and a pink pattern. For it being late September, it was still nice outside. I sat on the curb and waited for my ride. In the process, I fingered my backpack. Just in case, I brought my "supplies". Some pepper spray and a roll of dimes. Oh. And the spare keys. The spray was brand new, and hopefully, would not get clogged with sand. Hate when that happens. I fingered the dimes. A good solid weight. And the keys? Well, they were for punching. You know the drill.

Ten minutes later, I knew he was coming up the hill because I heard his bass. Then, he appeared and pulled up in front of my house.

He pushed his shades down to reveal those gorgeous, but not as deep as Jesse's, eyes. "_Nice…_I'm liking the top. Is it detachable?"

I scowled. "Don't get used to it, remember, I'm taken."

He snapped his fingers and feigned disgust. "Damn. I forgot. But not for long."

"I just had nothing better to do on this nice evening."

He rolled his eyes. "Sure."

I tried to grin, but it came out weak. I shouldn't do this. When was I ever like this? When Jesse was dead, I didn't like going out with guys. What was _wrong_ with me?

Copan obviously noticed my distress. "Chill! Suze, we're just friends. I'm not gonna hit on you or anything, all right? We're just friends…"

I hesitated, then got into the car. I buckled the seat belt and was getting comfortable when I heard, "…with benefits."

I stared in horror at him when I noticed him laughing. "RELAX Simon, I was just joking."

Ha. Joking my ass.

I fingered the keys. Maybe I should have brought a pencil. Do the whole skewered thing all over again.

* * *

We pulled up in front of a luxurious manor. Tall trees shaded the mile-long driveway and I leaned against the door, wishing to be with Susannah. How I longed to hold her, to embrace her, to feel her warmth, her softness, her scent…

Despite the serene breeze, I couldn't help but shudder. Why did we have to come?

"Mami, my legs are sore! I want run around!"

I heard my mother hush Tia and tell her that we were almost there, and I felt a small forefinger prod me in the back.

"Jesse…Jesse…" she tugged insistently on my sleeve.

I turned around and stared at Tia's upturned face. I couldn't help but smile. "Yes Tia?"

She sighed. "I miss Suzie. I want to play with Suzie." My heart wrenched and I tore my eyes away from her innocent ones. "Not today, Tia. Today, you are meeting your cousin Maria." I nearly spat her name out. Horribly memories came rushing into my skull and it throbbed dangerously. I had to stop thinking about her, about everything. I dragged my eyes to the rest of the car. I studied Valencia and her daydreaming, Carmen and her persistent nail filing, and the twins-

Well, who knew what they were doing. I stared at the rearview mirror and caught my father's guilty eyes. I knew he didn't like Maria. But a vow was a vow and one we couldn't break. Hopefully, things would work out and I would be able to remain with Susannah.

* * *

"MATT!" I laughed and threw sand at his general direction. "Stop fooling around."

He looked over at me and got off his board. "Come on, Suze. It's just the ocean. Nothing's going to hurt me."

I raised my eyebrows. "What if there were some man-o-war just waiting to grab you?"

"I'd say 'take the babe, 'cuz she's the hot sacrifice, not me.'"

I leaned against my arms. "Well, what if it were a ghost?"

"And tell me, what the fuck would a ghost be doing underwater? What are they trying to see down there?"

"Stop it. Don't push it."

I collapsed onto my towel and smiled. I had an awesome time. I looked at the waters and saw the amber sun. The beach was strangely empty. …it wasn't the same without Jesse. If only he were here…

"You have a killer rack."

I blinked and turned my head towards Matt. "Excuse me?"

He shoved his board into the sand, propping it up. "You heard me. Did anyone ever tell you that you had an awesome rack?"

I raised an eyebrow. "What the hell is that? Some weird Australian slang?"

He smiled cheekily. "No, that's pretty damn American." He plopped down next to me.

I stared at the clouds. "And, pray tell, what the definition is…"

He brushed it off. "No matter. Obviously, no one has." He settled into a comfortable position and there was a calm silence.

I started to say, "Well, this was awesome, thank you for taking me here, I had a blast-" when he interrupted.

"What does he have that I don't have?"

I jerked my head towards Matt. He had a stick and was poking the sand. He seemed concentrated on that, and aloof, but in his eyes I could see the strain.

"What?" I asked. I watched his progress. "_**Matt…**"_

"You heard me." He grunted as he pushed a rock out of the way. A surprisingly large rock on a beach. What was _that _doing there? "What does he have?"

"**_-loves-"_**

I blinked. Did I expect this? No. "Well, he's Jesse. And I have a past with him and he's-"

"Hot? Well, what about me? What am I to you? Just some toy? A pastime?"

I shifted around. "Matt," I said, "I'm not comfortable with this topic…I mean, I've known you for how long? I'm not saying my vows anytime soon." I stared at the rock. I didn't remember setting my towel next to a huge ass rock…

"So? Haven't you heard of love at first sight?"

"_**Su**-"_

I threw my hands in the air. "This is ridiculous. Wow. I wasn't expecting this." I stood up and brushed the sand off me. "I am 100 devoted to Jesse. Okay? And there's nothing you say or do that's going to change that. I'd like to see you try. Now, if you'll excuse me, I had an excellent time before this topic, and now, I need to catch a ride."

He finished his message in the sand. "**-_ze._**"

I turned to leave, but he grabbed my wrist. "Not so fast," he snarled and pulled me down. I shrieked, my cry echoing along the empty beach.

"LET ME GO!"

I kicked, high enough to make contact with his face, but not hard enough to make it hurt. He grabbed my leg and held it in that position. I started to sweat. With one arm on the thigh suspended, and the other one on the leg planted firmly on the ground, he lifted me effortlessly. I was doing the splits. I started squirming.

"Let me go, you moron-"

"Suzie, I thought you'd be more creative than that…moron? Does that strike you as…_desperate?"_

He lowered me onto the towel and rolled on top of me. "Don't deny it. Jesse isn't doing you any favors. I've seen you two. Sure, you're all content in his face, showing your affection, but how far does that go?"

I punched him, trying to get him off me. "Stop-" He was so strong.

"Does he ever do something as scandalous as this?" I felt his hand land on my bare stomach. It inched lower and lower…

"Has he ever made you feel this alive? As to wake these feelings?" I gasped as his hands tickled my inner thighs.

"No! Stop it, stop-"

I saw his face lower towards mine in slow motion. One hand cradled my face gently, but kept it captive, and his other hand went up my thigh, higher and higher until.

I gasped as his hands touched where not even I dared to touch. My muscles tightened with pleasure. As I gasped, his mouth came down on mine.

This kiss was unlike any I had ever experienced. Which, wasn't a lot. But it was different. It reeked of lust and want and desire. His hands brushed a certain nerve and I moaned. My mind wasn't working. It couldn't think through the haze.

_How could this stranger do this when not even Jesse had?_

A sudden fury weld up and I continued the act, but reached for my backpack. I unzipped the zipper and grabbed the first thing that I could reach; the keys.

I put one key between each joint, but before I could slash that face, I felt him get up.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to get that far. I'm-"

"YOU FREAK. BASTARD. GET OFF HER NOW!"

Matt whirled around and I quickly sat up and was face to face with…

Paul.

* * *

A/N: **PLEASE, I BEG OF YOU! REVIEW:-P**


	10. Ch 10 Threats and a Beach

**Ch 10**

A/N: Dear readers, thank you for reviewing. They keep me going and I have not forgotten! Things have been so crazy lately, yet I'm glad you guys took the time to say something. For that, I'm so grateful! You guys keep me writing! I hope this chapter will suffice! Please review, I'm such a beggar!

* * *

_Nombre de Dios, this insipid _chatter _must end sometime!_

I felt my eyes instinctly roll as Maria giggled, slapping her father lightly on the arm. "Oh, papa, you are too kind. It isn't even Navidad, and you are already giving me presents! You are so wonderful." And with that said, Maria gave her father a kiss on the cheek. I inwardly groaned. Why could I not stay with Susannah?

I hope she was not upset at me for not including her. That look on her face was something I could not place. I did not know what to think. Why did I leave her? My heart stung. I felt awful and traitorous for abandoning her. I left her to fend Crissi by herself! I tried to reassure myself. As long as she stayed in the ring we created, she would be safe from harm. However, I'd feel more secure if she were wearing a crucifix.

She still refuses to attend mass! I thought wryly.

"Of course, my little angel, is a father not entitled to spoiling his daughter?"

Why was I here? Listening to a too doting father spoiling his only daughter?

Oh, yes. Matters.

I turned my attention back to the room. It was a very tasteful room, decorated with lush furnishing. The furniture was red oak, hand carved. Heavy draperies covered the windows. Gorgeous plates hung from the walls, depicting various flowers of Spain. The room created a welcoming environment. Yet the chica across from me was far from welcoming. I eyed her ensemble, something Susannah would never be "caught dead in." Maria gave the room a coy smile and placed the gift onto the floor as though it was nothing. A glance proved that it was an expensive bracelet. And on her wrists were many other diamond bracelets. Her eyes traveled to my own and we made eye contact. She obviously did not realize that the look upon my face was not admiration as she gave me a feral smile. This look prompted me to hurriedly reached for my glass and drain it. . She thought that I found her, attractive perhaps? I noticed that her gaze never left my face and swallowing started to become difficult. Why was she watching me? Her eyes went from my eyes to my face, to my neck, to my torso, and then they lingered somewhere below that. I crossed my ankles, yet her eyes didn't follow that. She wasn't looking above my waist, nor below my-

I narrowed my eyebrows at her, and she raised hers in return. Her charcoal-lined eyes fluttered demurely down to her low shirt, which revealed an outrageous amount of skin, and she started to fiddle with the button of her shirt, turning it this way and that. Slowly she unbuttoned that top button to reveal something lacy. I looked away, not missing the smirk she cast me. My thoughts flared.

What was she _thinking_? Had she no decorum? Before I could probe her mind, I heard-

"So, Jesse, what do you think of my daughter?"

This was unexpected. My eyes leapt to my uncle. I choked mid-swallow and leaned forward. I put my glass on the table.

"Excuse me," I coughed and pulled out a handkerchief. I watched my uncle and saw that he was watching me intently, his eyes straying over to his daughter occasionally. I tucked the handkerchief into my shirt. Suddenly my tie seemed extremely tight.

I wished to point out that she was my relative. How could I explain? My attempt was dismal. "I think she is an—excellent cousin." I saw Tia reach for Maria's gift. Maria also saw and slapped Tia's hand away soundly. My eyes flashed as tears filled Tia's eyes. She sulked on the other side of the couch and the tears started flowing freely. The nerve of Maria! Upsetting my beloved sister! I couldn't reprimand her, however, because my uncle chose to speak.

"You are a good, handsome, fuerte, respecto hombre joven…a perfecto man for any chica. You are at your prime age for marriage."

I frowned at my uncle. "I wish to attend university first, earn a degree and have steady work."

"You wish to be a doctor?"

I nodded. "Si. It has been my aspiration for many years."

"Ah…" my uncle stroked his chin. "Medical school can take many, many años. Some girls wish to be settled soon. At your age, men get married."

"Si, uncle, in Spain; when you were young. I understand your point, but this is America. Education is far more crucial than nuptials."

"But Jesse, what if it is arranged?"

I put an innocent look upon my face, but could feel my heart throbbing. I did not wish to be wed! Not to anyone but Susannah, whom I love. And we both wished to attend college.

My uncle continued. "Did your father discuss with you about…" he swirled his wineglass. "…the arrangement?"

With that, Maria smiled.

How she infuriated me.

I looked at my father, who was holding his breath. He looked at me and his eyes gave me permission to handle this as I chose. I had to convince my uncle to drop the arrangement. For my sake and Susannah. I inhaled deeply.

"Estimado tío…what do you speak of? Do you not want me to make millions, earn a name and fortune for my future and wife? You cannot deny a man an education."

My uncle looked at Maria, who nudged with her slipper-ed toe.

"Jesse…some things are more important than schooling. Like promises. Promesas, you know?"

I nodded. "A Spaniard is most respected for the truths he holds."

This was obviously what my uncle wished to hear. "Si! That is exactly right and you know it."

I didn't want the conversation to go his way. I tried to steer it back to breaking off the arrangement. "Yes, dear uncle, promises are important. Yet who said that I would drop promises in exchange for knowledge? And did **I **make this promise? Or was it…_arranged for me?_"

Out of the corner of my eye, Valencia smiled. Uncle looked flustered, poor man. I knew it was Maria's doing.

Suddenly, she stood up and tears filled her eyes. "Papa, you are not trying hard enough!"

Everyone's jaws gaped at this remark. My father glared, mother blinked continually, even Carmen was aghast. Marriage into the family is frowned upon in modern society. Incest is wrong. Yet when the promise was made, obviously my father and uncle were young, and marriage into royal blood was first priority.

"Jesse," Maria spoke, "please give me a chance. You are an honorable man-"

"-and cousin," I intervened. Maria ignored this. This topic was so unnerving. It seemed like something in my past life. Maria continued, "do not deny me and hurt me so. Our fathers made this promise and promises must be kept. It would not hurt you to take me out. Do you find me unattractive?"

I could not openly insult my cousin by saying, "Yes, compared to Susannah," yet her father was sitting next to her standing self. So instead, I replied, "By many standards,"

This answer suited her fine. I smiled dryly.

She smiled, tears drying miraculously fast. "I'm glad you think so. We could go from there."

"Actually," I started, "we can't."

Her smile instantly vanished, replaced with an ugly expression. "Reason?"

I took a breath. "I'm already in love."

She laughed. "You are funny, Jesse! Surely you are joking. For who can possibly be fairer than me?"

I truly smiled the first time that night. "Oh, it does not matter, for it is not you, fair cousin. I am only avoiding disgrace in society by denying your interests." I bite out of an appetizer and stood. "So sorry, uncle. Papa, Mother, everyone; I must leave. I have other obligations tonight. Other _promises_."I walked away towards the kitchen, dropped off my plate and glass, and returned to the front door. I started pulling on my shoes.

"You're blowing our cousin off?" inquired Carmen as our uncle and father talked in the other room. She had followed me into the front hall. I heard laughter from Tia.

I pulled on a jacket and paused. "I am."

"Wow."

Suddenly, Maria entered and grabbed my arm painfully. "Jesse, surely you are joking!"

I shook my head. "No, Maria, I'm sorry. But I'm already devoted to someone else. I will always love you like a cousin."

"You will regret this, Jesse. Don't do this."

I lowered my head and kissed her hand. "Goodnight, cousin."

I wanted to be outside first. But I did not miss the malicious look on her face.

"You will regret this, Jesse."

* * *

"Paul-wait, it's not what it looks like." 

I scurried away from Matt and stood up, brushing sand off my body. "I still love Jesse! I really do! I mean, what you saw there? Yeah, totally was not intended. I-"

Paul stopped walking directly in front of me. He was off his crutches, obviously, able to use both legs. He crossed his arms and I couldn't help but notice how his arms were so toned and menacing. Yeah...bench pressing was good for him. He towered above me and looked down at me. I noticed that he still had a few scabs from Crissi's assault. His ocean eyes looked angry. "I'm not blind," he snapped, "I saw what the freak was doing even before that." He shook his head. "Jesus Christ, Simon, you really are naïve."

I felt tears sting my eyes. That hurt. I tried to cover it up, but a sob escaped my lips and I felt so ashamed. Damn it all, he thought I was cheating on Jesse! Just what I needed; for this psycho to just tell my boyfriend! Great. My cheeks flared. "This wasn't supposed to happen! I…I-" I felt my eyes narrow. Did he just call me naïve?

I obviously voiced this thought aloud. "Uh, yeah. Didn't you see this coming? Now back to the asshole."

"I thought you two were friends! Like, remember at school? You two were so chummy."

"That was before tonight."

Paul advanced toward Matt. I tried to follow, but his strides were so much longer than mine. You think that after being on crutches, he would have some sort of difficulty. Lies. All lies. "Get away from her," he growled. Matt narrowed his eyes. Sensing trouble, I ran faster.

"Oh, right, suddenly you're Saint Paul?" Matt guffawed at his pun. Paul's eyes flashed, but Matt continued, oblivious to the impending disaster. He was going to lose his arm or something. I sensed maim in the future. "I've seen the way you look at her; it's not the look of love-" he smiled rakishly, "-it's the look of _lust. _In school, watching the way she walks, the cuts on her shirts. The occasional lick of the lips. It's a wonder who you jack off to." My mouth dropped. Did Matt really say that? Matt started backing up as Paul tried to slug him. He continued even after my futile protests of "you-guys-are-creeps-stop." "Don't tell me you don't think of her in ways you shouldn't. You don't give a damn if she's taken, that's the beauty of it. It's the thrill of committing that sin… adultery. You know you want to do exactly what I did. You're just jealous. I swear I had good intentions, but when you're alone on a beach…you just want to caress her in the dark. Stroke her hair and maybe some other things. Oh, and not only that, but I've heard that you have a criminal record coming up. I mean, the whole rape thing? Yeah, that is a little far-"

Paul snapped. "SHUT IT!" Paul leapt towards Matt. Matt, suspecting this attack, feinted and pivoted on his foot. Paul whirled around, his eyes flashing in the quickly darkening sky.

"Stop it!" I shouted and jumped in front of Matt. This was not worth it. "Please, Paul, don't let him provoke you. It's under control now-"

"Yeah, because of me," he muttered vehemently.

I glared at him and was about to hurt him when I stopped. Paul, clairvoyant as he was, noticed and dropped his fists. "What?"

My eyes darted around. "Do you feel something?"

"Your sexy body?" Matt inquired. I shot him a dirty look. Boys.

"No you dolt, I meant-"

Paul stopped as well, eyes widening. "A chill."

I nodded. "Yeah, a chill."

"Well…you know…it is like, late at night on a beach, them sea breezes…"

"SHUT UP!" Paul and I shouted simultaneously. For once, Matt did.

"This isn't an ordinary chill…" I looked around at the fading surroundings. It was dusk and, true, the winds were picking up, but I like those breezes. They're cooling. Refreshing. Not chilling. I should have put on a sweater or something. This bikini really didn't help. Something caught my attention. Further scrutinizing made me squint.

Suddenly, Paul whispered hoarsely, "GET DOWN!!"

Paul grabbed my shoulder and pushed me down. Matt did as Paul told and we huddled behind a lifeguard post.

"What the hell is your p-"

Paul shushed us and pointed to the waters. My eyes followed his and I dropped my towel.

There was something on the water.

It was totally obvious; I mean, it was dark (almost), and silhouettes were very apparent against the twilight. Yet this…wasn't a boat. Nor a buoy.

It was a person.

On the water.

"Is that Jesus?" Matt laughed. I glared at him.

I looked at Paul and saw that he wasn't staring at the water anymore. Ooh no. He was staring at my collarbone. Or something else. Maybe this was a bad idea after all.

"Suze…are you supposed to be protected from something?" I realized he was staring at my necklace. It was an ordinary necklace, really. I guess he thought it was some repellent for…

Shit.

I frowned. "Jesse told me to stay in that chicken blood circle that we made at my house…"

"_Why??"_ Paul hissed urgently.

"Oh, err, I didn't tell you?"

The figure on the water was scanning the beach. You could tell because its hair was rippling in the steadily rising breeze.

"She wants to trade bodies. Crissi's going to kill me."

The figure on the water snapped its heard, hearing that name. White, pupil-less eyes stared at us across the waters. Paul's eyes widened as the figure smiled, revealing equally unnerving white teeth.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are!" said a voice.

"Shit. Come on! We've GOT to get out of here!"

Paul and I scrambled to our feet. Matt, however, remained stoic. His eyes were unseeing, staring out at the waters. "Matt!! Come on!! Get UP!!"

"I think I see my dad," he said, dazed.

"MATT! Now's not the time! Get up! Please!" I tugged at him. When he remained sitting, I steadied myself and wrapped my arms around his waist. "COME ON, MATT! MOVE!"

He blinked and noticed my arms. Then his gaze went back to the shore, where the figure was getting steadily nearer. "What the fuck is that light?" he said roughly.

Paul shouted. We glanced up, not realizing that Paul already was at the top of the beach, looking down. "Hurry!"

Matt and I broke into a run, just when that boulder we were sitting by earlier exploded. The lifeguard post started shaking, beams splitting, debris flying everywhere.

I stumbled on the steps, running as fast as my legs could. Shit! I forget my bag. I turned around and saw her gliding towards me. It was so bizarre. I quickly retrieved my bag and rushed back up the steps. I hoped the pepper spray was all right. It was expensive. Plus, that could come in handy later. Not. Unless we fought hand-to-hand, the keys and coins were pointless. And no way in hell did I plan on letting her come any nearer.

"Suze!! HURRY!" Paul was already at his BMW, the engine running. He backed out and flung open the passenger door. "Leave yours!" he barked sharply to Matt, who was bewildered. "Get inside mine. Now!!!"

"Yeah, and then what??" I asked hysterically. I heard maniacal cackling behind me.

"_Oooh Suzie…Suzie, sweetie, why are you running? Don't you remember me?? Don't ruin that face-I want it when I take over your body." _

"WHY THE FUCK ARE WE RUNNING?" screamed Matt. "YOU GUYS ARE SERIOUSLY JOSHING ME-"

"_Paul, what are you doing? Remember all the good times we had together? We can continue the fun and games just like before if you'd just hand over Suzie." _

I pushed Matt into the back, then crawled into the passenger seat, slamming the door.

"Now what???" I asked shrilly. This had never happened before. Never has a ghost, other than like, Maria, ever wanted to take over my body! I watched as Paul calmly accelerate. Crissi was behind us, trailing behind the car. I stared around. How the hell were we going to live? She was going to run us into the wall or just apparate into the car. She obviously never tried on a car, or it never occurred to her because she hadn't-yet. There was a thump at my window and my shrieked. Crissi was flying right outside our window! She extended a hand and I saw her attempt to slip it through the glass.

"Holy shit, she's moving our car!!" Paul gripped the wheel. I saw us start to veer around on the road, yet his hands were steady. Oh crap. Suddenly, I looked out my window. Crissi was smile demonically at me, and beyond her was…

Big Sur.

"Oh fuck! Oh fuck!" Matt started hitting my seat. "We're gonna fly fucking over the railing!! No one's going to find our fucking bodies because the fucking tide is going to pull us out to the fucking ocean!"

This was where Michael Meducci nearly killed me, I thought as my heart jolted. No Jesse or Angels to suddenly appear.

My eyes wandered to Paul's mirror. A rosary dangled from it, rocking back and forth to the swaying of the car. We were getting increasingly closer to the edge. Paul even honked his horn.

I snatched the rosary, ripping the thread. Beads went flying, but I didn't care.

"Suzie, what the hell are you _doing?_"

I had an idea, which might have killed me in the process, but I had to try.

"SUZE! WHAT IN HELL ARE YOU DOING? STOP IT! SHE'S GOING TO KILL YOU AND TAKE YOUR BODY, DON'T YOU KNOW THAT???"

As I was rolling down the window, I stopped and said quietly, "I know. That's why…_I'm doing this!!!" _With that, I rolled down the window completely. Crissi grabbed my throat. She lifted me as I was still in the seatbelt. I strained for breath and struggled to undo my seatbelt.

"You dumbass! You just WANT to die, don't you??"

"SUZE!"

I smiled feebly. I felt my vision blur. "Actually, I am a dumbass. But before I never let you take my body…I think I'm going to embrace Christianity soon."

And with that, I threw the rosary at her.

* * *

A/N: input. please. 


	11. Ch 11 Innuendo

A/N: Hey, guys! Sorry for the super long wait. Nevertheless, here it is, and hopefully, a decent read. A few mature elements scattered about, but nothing you can't handle.

* * *

Utter cacophonic chaos.

"YOU ARE SUCH A BITCH."

To say she screamed would be an understatement; she shrieked bloody murder. It was such a bloodcurdling scream that I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. Though my vision swam, I could make out the fury in her eyes transition to fear. Utter terror. Through the confusion, I realized that Crissi had released her stranglehold on my neck as she tried to swat the rosary away from her body. Huh. It was odd, because she was trying to avoid touching it. I watched the road fly by beneath me. I nearly dropped to the pavement, but I suppose those kickboxing lessons really paid off, because I grabbed the car and heaved myself through the window back to my seat. I felt myself wobble precariously as I landed on Paul's leather seat. Noticing that she let go of my throat, Paul increased his speed and jerked the BMW away from Big Sur and Crissi. I wasn't expecting that, so with a hoarse yelp, I toppled...

Headfirst into his lap.

To say the least, I was a little stunned. One minute I was staring into the maniacal eyes of my look-alike and the next, I was face first in Paul's crotch. The heat flushed from my hair to my cheeks.

Paul gave a little yelp and pushed me away. "Flattered, Suze, but now is not the time!" Was he kidding me? I quickly scrambled away and put on my seatbelt. I felt mortified. Though he knew it was unintentional, I caught the look he cast in my direction. I craned my neck to see behind us. Crissi was meters behind us, clawing at her face where the rosary hit it. It was hard to see in the dark, but I could have sworn I saw a crucifix-shaped welt on her incandescent face. I rubbed my neck and was startled to find raw welts as well. It burned at my touch and I instantly wrenched my hand away. I tried to inspect the damage, but I couldn't see much in the dark. I only knew that Crissi had left a handprint on my throat.

There was a silence in the backseat I didn't notice before. I turned around again and realized that Matt was out like a light. He was collapsed against his door, mouth open in an unflattering way. "What happened to him?" I asked, bewildered. My voice was husky from being strangled and I began to cough. Damn it!

Paul, still panting, looked over at me. There was concern written on his face. I shook my head and waved him off. "I'm perfectly fine, but what about him…?" I looked pointedly at Matt and, reluctantly, he drew his eyes to the backseat. I tried to ignore the plaintive longing on his face. "Oh, I guess the idiot exerted himself," he feigned nonchalance and I tried not to scoff. Paul hit a pothole. Matt didn't even move. I supposed Matt being knocked out was to our advantage. We could just lie and said he drank too much. He wouldn't believe what he saw tonight, anyway.

When we realized Crissi wasn't behind us, we finally relaxed. But the problem was far from over. I leaned into the cushy car seat.

"Paul?"

He grunted. I continued. "We're going to have to like, dump Matt off somewhere. It wouldn't do to have him, like, wake up while we're doing something, you know?" Before he could add anything crude, I quickly said, "Something _mediator _related."

I saw a hint of the cocky Paul. His lips quirked up. "Well, anything we 'do' is _mediator_ related, if you think about it."

I tried to ignore that statement and the weird tingling it caused. What was wrong with me? Just because Jesse didn't want to do anything _that_ physical did not give me any right to seek that elsewhere. I think my hormones were acting up again. I cleared my throat to no avail. I still sounded like a hag. "I don't know if my family would be exactly thrilled at the prospect of me bringing an unconscious guy home."

There was another pause. I looked at Paul again. "How did you know I was at the beach with Matt? I mean, you kind of saved me from him."

"Oh. He passed you a note, didn't he?"

I nodded. Realization dawned. "I didn't drop the note, did I?"

"Well, you did, in a way. I kind of got the hint when Matt was bragging about 'shagging a chick on the beach'. I knew you were his latest conquest so…" I visibly shuddered. Holy cow, how could I have gone to the beach _alone_ with such a pervert? Shows my sense of judgment. Really, why is it that I can never figure that sort of stuff on my own? "I figured I better stop him before something happened. Although…I don't think he meant to get that far."

"Let me guess, Crissi made him feel me up?"

Paul didn't say anything, but I figured that meant an affirmative. I slid my gaze his way. The lights from the dashboard illuminated his still face, eyes bathed in an eerie glow.

"Thanks, Paul. Thanks for being there. Even if it was Crissi's doing, I'm glad you were willing to stop it." Paul tilted his eyes in my direction and I looked away.

"If I seemed a little too brusque, it was because I didn't want to freak Matt out. He probably didn't know Crissi was messing with him." He paused. "About what Matt brought up…the whole how I look at you in school and all that-"

"Don't. Really, you don't have to explain yourself."

"But the jackass wasn't lying."

Changing the subject, I pulled at some stray threads on my backpack. "Why did the rosary burn her like that? I've never seen that before. I mean, that was so weird. Like something you'd read out of a vampire flick."

I could tell Paul wanted to continue our earlier conversation. I saw him open his mouth and shut it resolutely. He tried to feign disinterest, but he finally stopped the whole I-don't-give-a-care attitude after another mile. I thought the small talk was over so I tried to shake my hair dry. Suddenly, he spoke. "Suze…you know she's a malevolent being, right?" I jumped. He was quiet for so long because he was mulling over what I said. Actually thinking about what I brought up. "I mean, ghosts usually just want to get their business done and pass on. But apparently, her business is here. With you. You mentioned that she's after your body. That totally shocked me...but with Crissi, I guess I should be used to it. It's not like ghosts to want to possess other people. Rattle a few windows, pop up here and there, give money to a few living relatives…but she isn't your normal ghost. Fuck, I don't even think she's a ghost."

My mascara-less eyes widened. I suddenly noticed how cold it got in the car. It didn't help that my hair was still sodden from the ocean. To distract myself from Paul's eyes, though they should have been on the road, I fiddled with the heat. He nudged towards the corresponding toggles and I nodded my thanks. After pointing the vents toward me and raising the temperature, I asked, "What do you mean?"

Paul didn't bat an eye as he maintained his focus on the road. He cast a glance into his rearview mirror uneasily. "I know we're just starting to get back on semi-friendly terms" - I rolled my eyes. I avoided Paul like the plague in school sometimes- "so I don't want to scare you, but think about it, Suze. She's trying to take over your body. The rosary burned her. She never embraced like, religion of any sort before. Other than like, Satanism. Is she like, I don't know, a demon or something?"

There was an awful silence following this statement. Suddenly I burst out laughing. This was way too much. Cajoling, I tried to lighten the mood. "What, is she a succubus or something? Preying on the innocent in their sleep? Harassing all the ickle Paul Slaters' in the world?"

Paul didn't laugh. He didn't even smile. He just looked at me with something akin to horror. "When she was alive, we used to do things together," he said quietly.

I raised an eyebrow. "I know…but then again, you've never elaborated, so I could only assume."

Paul shifted uncomfortably. "I'm not proud of the stuff we did. Hell, sometimes it wasn't even my doing. I just went with the fun and games. I mean…" he raked a hand through his hair and looked at me. I averted my eyes. "You look like her, you know? Back then, I really wanted- I really had- damn it, I really wanted you. I still might. But that's beside the point. I'll admit, it was purely physical. She offered me what you never would, being who and what she was, she was the closest thing to you. I knew that she had a tattoo because, well, I've seen it."

"What's your point, Paul?" I said sharply. I felt my eyes narrow and my heart pound. I didn't need this right now. I needed to get home. "Paul, just drive. I really don't want to hear-"

"Just listen to me! You thought I raped you when it was really us just screwing around with your mind. I thought it would be interesting to see what she was capable of- I didn't want you to get hurt; I figured that it wouldn't be rape if you actually wanted to fuck, being on all those drugs. But you didn't, and I apologize. It freaked me out, what she could do. But do you realize what I'm trying to say? She was capable of so many messed up things in life. She did a lot of sick things. She knew what ghosts were. She taught us how to be bloody telepathic. I bet she did something up there that makes her…_more_."

I felt tears prick behind my eyes. Damn hormones. "I put all that behind me, Paul, stop bringing it up! You're lucky I trust you enough to even believe this crap."

"Suze, I'm not trying to hurt you anymore, but you need to know. If I don't tell you now, I never will."

"It was just a sick illusion, wasn't it?"

He nodded.

"Well, I guess I figured. Thanks for scarring me for life," I said angrily. "So now what? What's the difference between what Crissi is and what a normal ghost is? Does it really matter if we're just going to exorcise her like the rest?"

He glanced at me as if I were a complete imbecile. "It's not a matter of what's the difference. It's how do we get rid of her. Suze…I don't know if exorcising her will work this time."

"Why, Paul?"

"Because I've already tried."

_Thud._

"And?" I felt my heart pound. _Thud.__ Thud. Thud._

"Well, obviously, Suze," _Thud. _"She's still here. And she's right behind us."

I turned my head. That she was.

_Jesse…I hope you're safe._

She stopped. My heart stopped. She gave me a smile and I could hear her voice in the car: "Jesse, eh?"

And with that, she vanished.

Paul and I sat there, dumbfounded.

"Fuck."

* * *

As I undid the cuffs to my shirt, I rushed to Susannah's house and rang her doorbell. As I continued to busy myself with removing my tie, I noticed the lack of light coming from within. I rang the doorbell again. There was no response. It suddenly felt too close and I loosened my collar. "Susannah!"

Unexpectedly, I heard rustling nearby. I frowned and turned my head. I tried to stare into the darkness, but the dark was so complete I could not fathom what was moving. My house across the street was the only source of light on the street. Where were Susannah's parents and brothers? Where was she? I backed up frantically and craned my neck, nearly running into the tree on their yard. I could not see Susannah in her room. It wasn't that late… she couldn't possibly be sleeping. Her room was dark. There was no movement at all within the house.

_Susannah was not home._

"Susannah!" Nombre de dios.

I had half a mind to break into Susannah's house when something hit me painfully in my side. Shocked, I felt the air within my lungs escape and I fell. I turned my head to what must have been the sky. What had hit me? Was it an animal? Susannah's dog?

I tried to move, to get up, yet I could not. I froze when I heard her laughter.

"Jesse, darling, you are too cute." And then, she stepped into my view, swinging my tie with her revolting hands. I tried to move but found myself immobile. There she stood to the side of me, taunting me, daring me to move.

"What have you done to me?" I asked calmly. I watched her finger my tie. She looked the same as before, only she had a slight aura of evil surrounding her. A woman of the night, truly.

"Ohh…I just wanted to have some fun tonight."

"You and I have very different ideas on what 'fun' means, Crissandra."

She smirked, toying with the bottom of her exceedingly short skirt. I realized with horror that I was still on the ground. Jesu Cristo!

_Querida__…Susannah, where are you?_

I kept my voice mild. Perhaps I could distract her. Was she here to harm Susannah? If Susannah did not come home tonight, she would be safe.

"Stay away from Susannah," I warned as threateningly as I could.

She waved her hand. "I'm not here for Susannah, I've already dealt with the bitch. I'm actually here for you." I felt myself tense at the mention of Susannah. How dare she harm Susannah.

"Want to know a secret, Jesse?"

"Not remotely, no."

Her smirk grew as she swung a leg over my tie. I raised an eyebrow. She held both ends of my tie in her hand, and without warning, she began to slide it back and forth between her legs. She slowly began to increase her momentum. Her eyes rolled into her head and she said, as if in explanation, "I'm not wearing any underwear."

My eyes widened. Nombre de dios! I tried to raise myself but I still could not move. She suddenly dropped my now soiled tie onto my face. I attempted to shake it off, shuddering. Repulsive, vile fiend!

Suddenly, she stepped over my torso. Stark realization hit me as she walked up the length of my body. No! She stopped at my neck and leaned down, exposing more than what was deemed polite. I averted my eyes. How could I move?

"When I lower myself onto your face, I want you to suck me dry."

Was it possible for me to stop her? Mal ramera! I tried to move my arm, my head, anything.

"Never," I hissed vehemently and tried to move my arm.

She clucked her tongue. "I thought you were smart, too." She grabbed the tie, did a few more vile things to it, and leaned close to my face. She whispered, "When I'm through with you, you'll be begging for more."

I heard tires squealing. I saw her pivot and bare her teeth in a feral manner. She moved away from me. I heard a door open and slam shut.

"QUERIDA!! Do not step any nearer!" I felt my throat close and I gasped for breath. _Susannah!_

"Jesse, take out a crucifix!"

I suddenly realized that Crissi was distracted. I felt whatever witchery she used upon me vanish and I quickly got up. I reached inside my collar and pulled out my necklace. It was a beautiful crucifix. I saw Crissi move to attack Susannah. A sort of fury permeated my mind and I threw the cross at Crissi's back. Upon touching her, she screamed and, as quickly as she came, vanished. I ran to the site where she escaped and retrieved my necklace.

She could touch things wielding a crucifix but she could not contact the crucifix herself.

* * *

"Jesse!" I screamed and rush towards him. He ran towards me and lifted me, kissing my face, my eyelids, my cheeks, my lips.

"Querida, where were you? I thought you were staying in your room, safe."

I felt him pull away from me and assess my clothing. His eyes widened. "You are wet! And you are wearing swimwear."

His eyes narrowed and I felt his calloused fingertips touch my neck. "Susannah, what is the meaning of this?"

I suddenly remembered the giant red welt on my neck. "Oh," I smiled sheepishly, "that was-"

"Slater?"

I turned and saw Paul saunter up to us. "Hey, Jesse."

Jesse's eyes darted from mine to Paul's. "What is he doing with you?"

"Um." I looked towards the car. Matt was still in it, sound asleep or knocked out, I still wasn't sure. "Can we get inside first? It's getting awfully chilly out here."

I walked pass Jesse and Paul and opened the front door. I had a lot of explaining to do. Matt could wait-it was partly his fault for all of this.

"Paul, why were you alone with Susannah?"

"I wasn't alone, Jesse, just relax."

"How can I relax knowing she was assaulted by Crissi?"

"You were being assaulted by Crissi, too, were you not?"

I turned around and stared. Jesse looked uncomfortable. "I did not desire that sort of treatment."

"Really?" Paul raised an eyebrow as he shut the front door and locked it. He crossed his arms. "You actually resisted it?"

"We have more important things to talk about," I interrupted and stood between them. I didn't think they were going to be arguing, but we had more important things to discuss. Again, I noticed just how tall Paul and Jesse were. They seemed to tower over me.

"We're going to be keeping an eye on you tonight," Paul said.

Jesse, though obviously displeased, nodded. He held my hand. "It is imperative that you have more than one person watching you. We," he gestured towards Paul and himself, "will take turns staying awake while the other sleeps. You can sleep peacefully, meanwhile, in the…safety circle. We'll gather all the crucifixes we can."

"We need to talk to Father Dom," I added. They both agreed. I walked to the kitchen and grabbed as many energy drinks as I could. "Truth be told, though, she can still access my thoughts in my sleep. Shouldn't I stay awake as well?"

Jesse and Paul looked at each other. They seemed to reach a decision and nodded. "We'll monitor your dreams," Paul announced. "You really need to sleep peacefully, because we need to figure out how to get rid of Crissi. Fast."

Jesse gave my hand a final squeeze and left, saying, "I'll find all the crucifixes."

They could not be swayed. I sighed in defeat as Paul and I walked up the stairs. Fine. Let them be their chauvinistic selves.

"Hey, would painting crosses all over our selves help?"

I glared at Paul and he held up his hands. "Hey, it was just a suggestion."

I opened my bedroom door and frowned suspiciously. The window was open. My drawers were opened and things were scattered everywhere. Not from the wind, either.

"Susannah! Paul!" We both rushed back to the stairs and looked down. Jesse seemed fraught with worry. "She left another message…she claims that she took away all the crucifixes in the house. Yet she cannot touch them. How could she have done that?"

I descended the stairs. Crissi wouldn't be back for a while, so we were not too worried about that. Yet what Jesse said alarmed me. He had a point. However, I highly doubted that _all_ the crosses in our house could be gone. Sure, we weren't the most devout people, but we had enough.

"I think she's just trying to scare us. Jesse, you still have your crucifix, run to your house and grab a couple. I think we might have to make some."

I looked at Paul. "It's not Palm Sunday or anything…"

He rolled his eyes at me. "We'll use random things around the house. It'll be fine. I don't want us to separate, however. Do you think we're just better off across the street?"

He had a point. I nodded. "Let's just go to your house, Jesse; I don't think Crissi knows to target it yet." I walked to the kitchen. "I'm getting the chicken blood!"

I heard Paul mutter, "You and your pagan rituals."

I skipped to the kitchen and opened the fridge. I grabbed the bucket and peered inside. A fair amount. I shut the refrigerator when I saw something on the ground. It was a note for Brad.

Thanks for letting me come over. Feel like hanging with the ladies tonight?

Matt

My mind raced. Wait a second…this was from Matt. The one who was currently outside in Paul's car. Unconscious. There was something wrong with this picture. Matt came over…when?

Suddenly I raced to where Jesse and Paul were. "Take this," I shoved the bucket at Paul and continued out the door.

"Susannah? What is wrong?"

I looked around and finally spotted Paul's car.

It was empty.

Why did Matt come back to California…really?

Or was Crissi using him?

Utterly confused, I shook my head. Maybe this was just some paranoid notion.

As of late, I just wasn't sure anymore. About anything.


End file.
